The Effect of Smoking on the Hearing Status –A Hospital Based Study

ABSTRACT Background: Tobacco smoking has been known to affect the human physiology and among the various damaging effects of tobacco, it has been linked with its effect on the sense of hearing. Aim and Objective: This study was designed with the aim of finding the relationship between smoking and hearing loss in various age groups. Materials and Methods: This study included 148 subjects among which 108 were smokers and 40 were age matched non smokers. The smoking history of all the subjects whose ages ranged from 20 to 60 years was taken in detail and their audiometric thresholds were recorded in a sound proof room by a professional audiometrist. The data was analyzed by using appropriate statistical tests. Observation and Results: Smoking was found to be significantly associated with hearing loss. Also, the hearing loss was mainly of the sensorineural type, with the mild type (26-40 dB) of hearing loss being the most common among the smokers.