000170090 001__ 170090 000170090 005__ 20260318155254.0 000170090 0247_ $$2doi$$a10.1016/j.amjoto.2026.104799 000170090 0248_ $$2sideral$$a148659 000170090 037__ $$aART-2026-148659 000170090 041__ $$aeng 000170090 100__ $$aPeribáñez García, Roberto$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000170090 245__ $$aRelationship between hearing loss, cognitive impairment, and dementia; meta-analysis of cohort studies in which the exposure factor is hearing loss measured by audiometry 000170090 260__ $$c2026 000170090 5060_ $$aAccess copy available to the general public$$fUnrestricted 000170090 5203_ $$aIntroduction-objectives: There is a probable relationship between hearing loss and cognitive decline and dementia: patients with hearing loss appear to develop cognitive difficulties earlier and more frequently. However, the relationship is not completely clear. A meta-analysis of high-quality studies is needed to clarify the nature of this relationship. Materials and methods: Meta-analysis of cohort studies in which the exposure factor is hearing loss, necessarily measured with pure-tone audiometry, and the outcome is the progression of cognitive decline measured with validated scales or the onset of dementia. The inclusion period for the studies was 2019–2023. Results: Of the 5349 articles identified, 11 cohort studies were included in the systematic review; and 8 in the meta-analysis. In those where the outcome was dementia (expressed as Hazard Ratio [HR]), a statistically significant relationship was found, with an HR of 1.32 (1.30–1.34), with low heterogeneity and a low risk of publication bias. In those where the outcome was expressed as linear regression (beta), no statistically significant results were found. Conclusions: There appears to be a relationship between hearing loss and cognitive impairment/dementia. Other forms of hearing loss (such as central hearing loss) need to be evaluated to fully assess the effect and implications of this relationship. 000170090 540__ $$9info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess$$aby-nc-nd$$uhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.es 000170090 655_4 $$ainfo:eu-repo/semantics/article$$vinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 000170090 700__ $$aRodriguez Rodriguez, Francisco Álvaro$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000170090 700__ $$aAscaso Adiego, Blanca 000170090 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0002-3265-504X$$aAdiego Leza, María Isabel$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000170090 7102_ $$11013$$2653$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Cirugía$$cÁrea Otorrinolaringología 000170090 7102_ $$11007$$2610$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Medicina, Psiqu. y Derm.$$cArea Medicina 000170090 773__ $$g47, 2 (2026), 104799 [9 p.]$$pAm. j. otolaryngol.$$tAMERICAN JOURNAL OF OTOLARYNGOLOGY$$x0196-0709 000170090 8564_ $$s2367565$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/170090/files/texto_completo.pdf$$yVersión publicada 000170090 8564_ $$s2316469$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/170090/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon$$xicon$$yVersión publicada 000170090 909CO $$ooai:zaguan.unizar.es:170090$$particulos$$pdriver 000170090 951__ $$a2026-03-18-13:52:00 000170090 980__ $$aARTICLE