Table 1.
Baseline Characteristics of the Study Population by Hearing Statusa
| Variable | Total | No HL | Mild HL | Moderate or greater HL | p valueb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Sample (n, %) | 3,188 | 1,070 (33.6) | 1,265 (39.7) | 853 (26.8) | |
| Age (years, %) | |||||
| 71–75 | 810 (25.4) | 386 (47.7) | 319 (39.4) | 105 (12.9) | <.001 |
| 76–80 | 1,275 (40.0) | 484 (38.0) | 506 (39.7) | 285 (22.4) | |
| 81–85 | 754 (23.7) | 166 (22.0) | 312 (41.4) | 276 (36.6) | |
| 86–94 | 349 (11.0) | 34 (9.7) | 128 (36.7) | 187 (53.6) | |
| Female, n, % | 1,882 (59.0) | 779 (41.4) | 729 (38.7) | 374 (19.9) | <.001 |
| Black, n, % | 710 (22.3) | 360 (50.7) | 251 (35.4) | 99 (13.9) | <.001 |
| Education, n, % | |||||
| <High school | 368 (11.5) | 104 (28.2) | 138 (37.5) | 126 (34.2) | <.001 |
| High school/GED | 1,311 (41.1) | 406 (31.0) | 527 (40.2) | 378 (28.8) | |
| >High school | 1,509 (47.3) | 560 (37.1) | 600 (39.8) | 349 (23.1) | |
| BMI (kg/m 2 ), mean, SD | 28.4 (5.4) | 28.5 (5.5) | 28.6 (5.5) | 27.9 (4.9) | .008 |
| Smoking status, n, % | |||||
| Current | 228 (7.2) | 81 (35.5) | 81 (35.5) | 66 (28.9) | .040 |
| Former | 1,494 (46.9) | 463 (31.0) | 625 (41.8) | 406 (27.2) | |
| Never | 1,466 (46.0) | 526 (35.9) | 559 (38.1) | 381 (26.0) | |
| Diabetes, % | 1,057 (33.2) | 342 (32.4) | 433 (41.0) | 282 (26.7) | .510 |
| Hypertension, % | 2,531 (79.4) | 861 (34.0) | 989 (39.1) | 681 (26.9) | .370 |
| History of MI, % | 302 (9.5) | 87 (28.8) | 107 (35.4) | 108 (35.7) | .001 |
| History of stroke, % | 453 (14.2) | 138 (30.5) | 168 (37.0) | 147 (32.5) | .012 |
| b Cognitive factor score (SD) | −0.11 (0.88) | 0.10 (0.86) | −0.01(0.85) | −0.16 (0.82) | <.001 |
| Hearing aid use, % | 630 (19.8) | 14 (2.2) | 148 (23.5) | 468 (74.2) | <.001 |
| Depressive symptoms (CES-D ≥ 9) | 147 (4.6) | 32 (21.8) | 64 (43.5) | 51 (34.7) | .005 |
Note: BMI = Body mass index; GED = General educational development; HL = Hearing loss; MI = Myocardial infarction; SD = Standard deviation.
aHearing status defined using WHO criteria pure-tone averages (PTA) of thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz frequencies in the better hearing ear. Categorized using PTA as normal (<25dB), mild hearing loss (≥25 to <40 dB) and moderate or greater hearing loss (≥40 dB).
b p values for Pearson’s chi-squared tests for categorical variables and analysis of variance for continuous variables.
cCognitive factor score is a summary score representing performance across all Visit 6 neurocognitive tests with units in standard deviations.