Genome-Wide Study of Hearing Impairment

More than 25% of individuals over age 65 and 50% of individuals over age 80 suffer from varying levels of age-related hearing impairment (AHRI), and adults are losing hearing at earlier ages than in the past. There is strong evidence that both genetic and environmental factors play a role in AHRI. This is a genome-wide association study that is orders of magnitude larger than previous studies in a cohort of 100,000 individuals nested in the Kaiser Research Program on Genes, Environment, and Health. This project provides an efficient and innovative opportunity to obtain a comprehensive understanding of how these genetic factors impact AHRI, which may help identify individuals at greater risk. Understanding the genetic factors will also lead to better understanding of the underlying biological mechanisms of AHRI, which may improve potential treatments.

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