We are excited to have you join us for an amazing educational line up, check out the agenda below for the 2025 Conference. Please note that this agenda is subject to change.
Gaps in the public health prevention of hearing loss likely exist in the US, but these have not been wholistically characterized previously. Using data on personal environmental noise exposure and hearing-related surveys from >100,000 participants consented and enrolled in the Apple Hearing Study from 2019-2022, we used multilevel regression and poststratification models to estimate the population at risk of noise-induced hearing loss (primary prevention), the prevalence of poor/fair hearing ability and diagnosed hearing loss (secondary prevention), and the use of hearing aid/cochlear implants (tertiary prevention). Modeling estimates suggest that 88 million US adults (95% confidence interval: 81-95) are consistently exposed to noise levels high enough to cause hearing loss. Around 67 million (62-72) perceive a poor/fair ability to hear, of which only roughly half have been diagnosed with a hearing loss (36 million [32-40]). Nearly 16.5 million (16-17) of those diagnosed with a hearing loss are estimated to not be using hearing aids or cochlear implants. Regulation of noise (e.g., work- and transportation-related), audiological testing, especially of younger adults, and expanded access to hearing assistive devices are needed to reduce the considerable gaps in hearing-related public health.
