Hearing Impairment, Household Composition, Marital Status, and Mortality Among U.S. Adults

Abstract

Objectives: This study investigates associations between hearing impairment, household composition, marital status, and all-cause mortality for a representative sample of United States adults aged 40 and older (N = 198,902).

Methods: We use data from 11 waves of the National Health Interview Survey (2004-2014) linked to prospective mortality status through 2015. The risk of mortality over the follow-up period is estimated using Cox proportional hazard models.

Results: Compared to those with good to excellent hearing, adults with moderate to severe hearing impairments and deaf adults had 11% and 21% higher risk of death from any cause over the follow-up period, respectively. Household composition and marital status, as indicators of household social support systems, associated independently with the risk of mortality but did not substantively change the association between hearing impairment and mortality.

Discussion: Hearing impairment represents an important contributor to the length of life for adults age 40 and older, independent of other important and established determinants of mortality.

Keywords: Hearing impairment; Household composition; Marital status; Mortality.