Table 3. Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of the Study Population Based on HL Diagnosis and Propensity Score Matching.
| Characteristic | Before Matchinga | After Matchinga | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. (%) | Standardized Difference | No. (%) | Standardized Difference | |||
| HL Group | Non-HL Group | HL Group | Non-HL Group | |||
| Sex | ||||||
| Male | 4643 (57.1) | 453 663 (49.4) | 0.15 | 4643 (57.1) | 4461 (54.8) | 0.04 |
| Female | 3492 (42.9) | 464 884 (50.6) | 0.15 | 3492 (42.9) | 3674 (45.2) | 0.04 |
| Age group, y | ||||||
| 45-64 | 3960 (48.7) | 846 742 (92.2) | 1.08 | 3960 (48.7) | 3772 (46.4) | 0.05 |
| 65-74 | 2378 (29.2) | 45 997 (5.0) | 0.68 | 2378 (29.2) | 2335 (28.7) | 0.01 |
| ≥75 | 1797 (22.1) | 25 808 (2.8) | 0.61 | 1797 (22.1) | 2028 (24.9) | 0.07 |
| Insurance premium, NT$b | ||||||
| Fixed premium, dependent, low income | 2844 (35.0) | 293 091 (31.9) | 0.06 | 2844 (35.0) | 3136 (38.5) | 0.07 |
| <20 000 | 2335 (28.7) | 196 648 (21.4) | 0.17 | 2335 (28.7) | 2201 (27.1) | 0.04 |
| ≥20 000 | 2956 (36.3) | 428 808 (46.7) | 0.21 | 2956 (36.3) | 2798 (34.4) | 0.04 |
| Residence | ||||||
| Rural | 2387 (29.3) | 190 897 (20.8) | 0.20 | 2387 (29.3) | 2385 (29.3) | 0.0004 |
| Urban | 5748 (70.7) | 727 650 (79.2) | 0.20 | 5748 (70.7) | 5750 (70.7) | 0.0004 |
| Index year | ||||||
| 2000 | 890 (10.9) | 83 336 (9.1) | 0.06 | 890 (10.9) | 890 (10.94) | Exact match |
| 2001 | 853 (10.5) | 81 582 (8.9) | 0.05 | 853 (10.5) | 853 (10.5) | Exact match |
| 2002 | 812 (10.0) | 80 823 (8.8) | 0.04 | 812 (10.0) | 812 (10.0) | Exact match |
| 2003 | 754 (9.3) | 80 773 (8.8) | 0.02 | 754 (9.3) | 754 (9.3) | Exact match |
| 2004 | 815 (10.0) | 79 627 (8.7) | 0.05 | 815 (10.0) | 815 (10.0) | Exact match |
| 2005 | 754 (9.3) | 77 122 (8.4) | 0.03 | 754 (9.3) | 754 (9.3) | Exact match |
| 2006 | 687 (8.4) | 75 121 (8.2) | 0.01 | 687 (8.4) | 687 (8.4) | Exact match |
| 2007 | 628 (7.7) | 74 109 (8.1) | 0.01 | 628 (7.7) | 628 (7.7) | Exact match |
| 2008 | 603 (7.4) | 72 967 (7.9) | 0.02 | 603 (7.4) | 603 (7.4) | Exact match |
| 2009 | 558 (6.9) | 71 568 (7.8) | 0.04 | 558 (6.9) | 558 (6.9) | Exact match |
| 2010 | 459 (5.6) | 70 843 (7.7) | 0.08 | 459 (5.6) | 459 (5.6) | Exact match |
| 2011 | 322 (4.0) | 69 891 (7.6) | 0.16 | 322 (4.0) | 322 (4.0) | Exact match |
| Coronary artery disease | ||||||
| No | 6037 (74.2) | 878 706 (95.7) | 0.63 | 6041 (74.3) | 6252 (76.9) | 0.06 |
| Yes | 2098 (25.8) | 39 841 (4.3) | 0.63 | 2094 (25.7) | 1883 (23.1) | 0.06 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | ||||||
| No | 6854 (84.3) | 897 336 (97.7) | 0.48 | 6854 (84.3) | 7092 (87.2) | 0.08 |
| Yes | 1281 (15.7) | 21 211 (2.3) | 0.48 | 1281 (15.7) | 1043 (12.8) | 0.08 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | ||||||
| No | 6152 (75.6) | 879 576 (95.8) | 0.60 | 6152 (75.6) | 6418 (78.9) | 0.08 |
| Yes | 1983 (24.4) | 38 971 (4.2) | 0.60 | 1983 (24.4) | 1717 (21.1) | 0.08 |
| Diabetes | ||||||
| No | 6334 (77.9) | 869 840 (94.7) | 0.50 | 6334 (77.9) | 6457 (79.4) | 0.04 |
| Yes | 1801 (22.1) | 48 707 (5.3) | 0.50 | 1801 (22.1) | 1678 (20.6) | 0.04 |
| Chronic kidney disease | ||||||
| No | 7421 (91.2) | 901 083 (98.1) | 0.31 | 7421 (91.2) | 7544 (92.7) | 0.06 |
| Yes | 714 (8.8) | 17 464 (1.9) | 0.31 | 714 (8.8) | 591 (7.3) | 0.06 |
| Hypertension | ||||||
| No | 4180 (51.4) | 812 283 (88.4) | 0.88 | 4180 (51.4) | 4214 (51.8) | 0.01 |
| Yes | 3955 (48.6) | 106 264 (11.6) | 0.88 | 3955 (48.6) | 3921 (48.2) | 0.01 |
| Hyperlipidemia | ||||||
| No | 5589 (68.7) | 841 754 (91.6) | 0.60 | 5589 (68.7) | 5722 (70.3) | 0.04 |
| Yes | 2546 (31.3) | 76 793 (8.4) | 0.60 | 2546 (31.3) | 2413 (29.7) | 0.04 |
| Anxiety | ||||||
| No | 6373 (78.3) | 867 351 (94.4) | 0.48 | 6373 (78.3) | 6559 (80.6) | 0.06 |
| Yes | 1762 (21.7) | 51 196 (5.6) | 0.48 | 1762 (21.7) | 1576 (19.4) | 0.06 |
| Depression | ||||||
| No | 7588 (93.3) | 900 005 (98.0) | 0.23 | 7588 (93.3) | 7705 (94.7) | 0.06 |
| Yes | 547 (6.7) | 18 542 (2.0) | 0.23 | 547 (6.7) | 430 (5.3) | 0.06 |
| Alcohol-related illness | ||||||
| No | 7987 (98.2) | 911 467 (99.2) | 0.09 | 7987 (98.2) | 8001 (98.4) | 0.01 |
| Yes | 148 (1.8) | 7080 (0.8) | 0.09 | 148 (1.8) | 134 (1.6) | 0.01 |
| Head injury | ||||||
| No | 7570 (93.1) | 888 807 (96.8) | 0.17 | 7570 (93.1) | 7661 (94.2) | 0.05 |
| Yes | 565 (6.9) | 29 740 (3.2) | 0.17 | 565 (6.9) | 474 (5.8) | 0.05 |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | ||||||
| No | 7936 (97.6) | 913 285 (99.4) | 0.15 | 7936 (97.6) | 7975 (98.0) | 0.03 |
| Yes | 199 (2.4) | 5262 (0.6) | 0.15 | 199 (2.4) | 160 (2.0) | 0.03 |
| Asthma | ||||||
| No | 7226 (88.8) | 866 717 (94.4) | 0.20 | 7226 (88.8) | 7329 (90.1) | 0.04 |
| Yes | 909 (11.2) | 51 830 (5.6) | 0.20 | 909 (11.2) | 806 (9.9) | 0.04 |
| Admissionc | ||||||
| No | 6132 (75.4) | 856 284 (93.2) | 0.42 | 6132 (75.4) | 6356 (78.1) | 0.06 |
| Yes | 2003 (24.6) | 62 263 (6.8) | 0.42 | 2003 (24.6) | 1779 (21.9) | 0.06 |
Abbreviation: HL, hearing loss.
a
Propensity score matching was performed for sex, age, residence, insurance premium, coronary artery disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, anxiety, depression, alcohol-related illness, head injury, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, times of hospital admission, and index year.
b
US$1 = NT$31.2 in 2019.
c
Indicates admission to a hospital 1 year before a diagnosis of HL.