Review Article

Air pollution and the auditory system at risk: A narrative review

Abstract

Background and aim: Air pollution has a negative impact on various body systems, including auditory system. The aim of this study was to provide a comprehensive review of research investigating the effects of air pollution on various levels of the auditory system, including peripheral and central components, as well as related cognitive processing and associated disorders.
Recent finding: Air pollution includes a diverse and complex mixture of chemicals, particulate matter or biological substances in ambient air. Air pollution can be harmful to humans and other living things. It has become a major environmental concern in recent decades, especially in developing and industrialized countries. There is a lot of evidence showing that air pollution can harm different parts of the body, like the lungs, heart, brain, and ears. Hearing loss is the second most common non-infectious disorder, and its effects can lead to serious issues in communication, speech, language, education, social interactions, finances, and mental well-being.
Conclusion: This study examines various research studies that link air pollution to hearing problems, highlighting how air pollutants can harm different aspects of the auditory system.

1. Genc S, Zadeoglulari Z, Fuss SH, Genc K. The adverse effects of air pollution on the nervous system. J Toxicol. 2012;2012:782462. [DOI:10.1155/2012/782462]
2. Liu J, Mauzerall DL, Chen Q, Zhang Q, Song Y, Peng W, et al. Air pollutant emissions from Chinese households: A major and underappreciated ambient pollution source. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016;113(28):7756-61. [DOI:10.1073/pnas.1604537113]
3. Narayan KM, Ali MK, Koplan JP. Global noncommunicable diseases--where worlds meet. N Engl J Med. 2010;363(13):1196-8. [DOI:10.1056/NEJMp1002024]
4. Mills NL, Donaldson K, Hadoke PW, Boon NA, MacNee W, Cassee FR, et al. Adverse cardiovascular effects of air pollution. Nat Clin Pract Cardiovasc Med. 2009;6(1):36-44. [DOI:10.1038/ncpcardio1399]
5. Chen H, Goldberg MS, Villeneuve PJ. A systematic review of the relation between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and chronic diseases. Rev Environ Health. 2008;23(4):243-97. [DOI:10.1515/reveh.2008.23.4.243]
6. Mansour Y, Blackburn K, González-González LO, Calderón-Garcidueñas L, Kulesza RJ. Auditory Brainstem Dysfunction, Non-Invasive Biomarkers for Early Diagnosis and Monitoring of Alzheimer's Disease in Young Urban Residents Exposed to Air Pollution. J Alzheimers Dis. 2019;67(4):1147-55. [DOI:10.3233/JAD-181186]
7. Calderón-Garcidueñas L, Kulesza RJ, Mansour Y, Aiello-Mora M, Mukherjee PS, González-González LO. Increased Gain in the Auditory Pathway, Alzheimer's Disease Continuum, and Air Pollution: Peripheral and Central Auditory System Dysfunction Evolves Across Pediatric and Adult Urbanites. J Alzheimers Dis. 2019;70(4):1275-86. [DOI:10.3233/JAD-190405]
8. Elbaz A, Moisan F. Update in the epidemiology of Parkinson's disease. Curr Opin Neurol. 2008;21(4):454-60. [DOI:10.1097/WCO.0b013e3283050461]
9. Mateen FJ, Brook RD. Air pollution as an emerging global risk factor for stroke. JAMA. 2011;305(12):1240-1. [DOI:10.1001/jama.2011.352]
10. Choi HG, Min C, Kim SY. Air pollution increases the risk of SSNHL: A nested case-control study using meteorological data and national sample cohort data. Sci Rep. 2019;9(1):8270. [DOI:10.1038/s41598-019-44618-0]
11. Heinrich J, Raghuyamshi VS. Air pollution and otitis media: a review of evidence from epidemiologic studies. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 2004;4(4):302-9. [DOI:10.1007/s11882-004-0075-4]
12. Chang KH, Tsai SC, Lee CY, Chou RH, Fan HC, Lin FC, et al. Increased Risk of Sensorineural Hearing Loss as a Result of Exposure to Air Pollution. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(6):1969. [DOI:10.3390/ijerph17061969]
13. Calderón-Garcidueñas L, D'Angiulli A, Kulesza RJ, Torres-Jardón R, Osnaya N, Romero L, et al. Air pollution is associated with brainstem auditory nuclei pathology and delayed brainstem auditory evoked potentials. Int J Dev Neurosci. 2011;29(4):365-75. [DOI:10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2011.03.007]
14. Moossavi A, Mehrkian S, Gohari N, Nazari MA, Bakhshi E, Alain C. The effect of harmonic training on speech perception in noise in hearing-impaired children. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol. 2021;149:110845. [DOI:10.1016/j.ijporl.2021.110845]
15. Gohari N, Dastgerdi ZH, Rouhbakhsh N, Afshar S, Mobini R. Training Programs for Improving Speech Perception in Noise: A Review. J Audiol Otol. 2023;27(1):1-9. [DOI:10.7874/jao.2022.00283]
16. Gohari N, Sajadi E, Azvantash Z, Khavarghazalani B. A comparative study on the general health of the mothers of children with cochlear implant, hearing aid, and normal hearing. Aud Vestib Res. 2020;29(2):117-21. [DOI:10.18502/avr.v29i2.2793]
17. Moosavi A, Hosseini Dastgerdi Z, Lotfi Y, Mehrkian S, Bakhshi E, et al. Auditory Lateralization Ability in Children with (Central) Auditory Processing Disorder. Iranian Rehabilitation Journal. 2014;12(1):31-7.
18. Lotfi Y, Dastgerdi ZH, Farazi M, Moossavi A, Bakhshi E. Auditory temporal processing assessment in children with developmental stuttering. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol. 2020;132:109935. [DOI:10.1016/j.ijporl.2020.109935]
19. Block ML, Calderón-Garcidueñas L. Air pollution: mechanisms of neuroinflammation and CNS disease. Trends Neurosci. 2009;32(9):506-16. [DOI:10.1016/j.tins.2009.05.009]
20. Scheepers PT, Bos RP. Combustion of diesel fuel from a toxicological perspective. I. Origin of incomplete combustion products. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1992;64(3):149-61. [DOI:10.1007/BF00380904]
21. Terzano C, Di Stefano F, Conti V, Graziani E, Petroianni A. Air pollution ultrafine particles: toxicity beyond the lung. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2010;14(10):809-21.
22. Ramanathan V, Feng Y. Air pollution, greenhouse gases and climate change: Global and regional perspectives. Atmos Environ. 2009;43(1):37-50. [DOI:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2008.09.063]
23. Zemek R, Szyszkowicz M, Rowe BH. Air pollution and emergency department visits for otitis media: a case-crossover study in Edmonton, Canada. Environ Health Perspect. 2010;118(11):1631-6. [DOI:10.1289/ehp.0901675]
24. Deng Q, Lu C, Li Y, Chen L, He Y, Sundell J, et al. Association between prenatal exposure to industrial air pollution and onset of early childhood ear infection in China. Atmos Environ. 2017;157:18-26. [DOI:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2017.03.005]
25. Järup L. Hazards of heavy metal contamination. Br Med Bull. 2003;68:167-82. [DOI:10.1093/bmb/ldg032]
26. Kampa M, Castanas E. Human health effects of air pollution. Environ Pollut. 2008;151(2):362-7. [DOI:10.1016/j.envpol.2007.06.012]
27. National Guideline Centre (UK). Hearing loss in adults: assessment and management. London: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2018 Jun.
28. Schulze A, Zahnert T. Differenzialdiagnostik der Hörstörungen [Differential diagnosis of hearing disorders]. Laryngorhinootologie. 2014;93(10):689-715. German. [DOI:10.1055/s-0034-1387738]
29. Bondy J, Berman S, Glazner J, Lezotte D. Direct expenditures related to otitis media diagnoses: extrapolations from a pediatric medicaid cohort. Pediatrics. 2000;105(6):E72. [DOI:10.1542/peds.105.6.e72]
30. Senturia BH, Bluestone CD, Lim DJ, Klein JO, Paradise JL. Report of the AD HOC Committee on Definition and Classification of Otitis Media and Otitis Media with Effusion. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 1980;89:3-4.
31. Park M, Han J, Jang MJ, Suh MW, Lee JH, Oh SH, et al. Air pollution influences the incidence of otitis media in children: A national population-based study. PLoS One. 2018;13(6):e0199296. [DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0199296]
32. Ribeiro H, Cardoso MR. Air pollution and children's health in São Paulo (1986-1998). Soc Sci Med. 2003;57(11):2013-22. [DOI:10.1016/s0277-9536(03)00068-6]
33. Lu C, Li Q, Qiao Z, Liu Q, Wang F. Effects of pre-natal and post-natal exposures to air pollution on onset and recurrence of childhood otitis media. J Hazard Mater. 2023;459:132254. [DOI:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132254]
34. Vithayathil AA, Sharma A, Arora A, HK N. Air pollution and Otitis media among children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Trends Clin Med Sci. 2023;119-27.
35. Umemura K, Kohno Y, Matsuno H, Uematsu T, Nakashima M. A new model for photochemically induced thrombosis in the inner ear microcirculation and the use of hearing loss as a measure for microcirculatory disorders. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 1990;248(2):105-8. [DOI:10.1007/BF00240231]
36. Heinrich UR, Helling K, Sifferath M, Brieger J, Li H, Schmidtmann I, et al. Gentamicin increases nitric oxide production and induces hearing loss in guinea pigs. Laryngoscope. 2008;118(8):1438-42. [DOI:10.1097/MLG.0b013e3181739bd9]
37. Choi YH, Kim K. Noise-induced hearing loss in Korean workers: co-exposure to organic solvents and heavy metals in nationwide industries. PLoS One. 2014;9(5):e97538. [DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0097538]
38. Levine S, Hofstetter P, Zheng XY, Henderson D. Duration and peak level as co-factors in hearing loss from exposure to impact noise. Scand Audiol Suppl. 1998;48:27-36.
39. Fetoni AR, Paciello F, Rolesi R, Paludetti G, Troiani D. Targeting dysregulation of redox homeostasis in noise-induced hearing loss: Oxidative stress and ROS signaling. Free Radic Biol Med. 2019;135:46-59. [DOI:10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2019.02.022]
40. Olivetto E, Simoni E, Guaran V, Astolfi L, Martini A. Sensorineural hearing loss and ischemic injury: Development of animal models to assess vascular and oxidative effects. Hear Res. 2015;327:58-68. [DOI:10.1016/j.heares.2015.05.004]
41. Chau JK, Lin JR, Atashband S, Irvine RA, Westerberg BD. Systematic review of the evidence for the etiology of adult sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Laryngoscope. 2010;120(5):1011-21. [DOI:10.1002/lary.20873]
42. Karali E, Gunes A. The effects of meteorological factors and air pollution on prognosis of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Exp Biomed Res. 2020;3(3):191-8. [DOI:10.30714/j-ebr.2020361057]
43. Seo JH, Jeon EJ, Park YS, Kim J, Chang KH, Yeo SW. Meteorological conditions related to the onset of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Yonsei Med J. 2014;55(6):1678-82. [DOI:10.3349/ymj.2014.55.6.1678]
44. Ryu IY, Park SH, Park EB, Kim HJ, Kim SH, Yeo SG. Factors Prognostic of Season-Associated Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: A Retrospective Observational Study. J Audiol Otol. 2017;21(1):44-8. [DOI:10.7874/jao.2017.21.1.44]
45. Lee HM, Kim MS, Kim DJ, Uhm TW, Yi SB, Han JH, et al. Effects of meteorological factor and air pollution on sudden sensorineural hearing loss using the health claims data in Busan, Republic of Korea. Am J Otolaryngol. 2019;40(3):393-9. [DOI:10.1016/j.amjoto.2019.02.010]
46. Cheng CG, Chen YH, Yen SY, Lin HC, Lin HC, Chou KR, et al. Air Pollution Exposure and the Relative Risk of Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Taipei. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022;19(10):6144. [DOI:10.3390/ijerph19106144]
47. Tsai SC, Hsu YC, Lai JN, Chou RH, Fan HC, Lin FC, et al. Long-term exposure to air pollution and the risk of developing sudden sensorineural hearing loss. J Transl Med. 2021;19(1):424. [DOI:10.1186/s12967-021-03095-8]
48. Lehner C, Gehwolf R, Tempfer H, Krizbai I, Hennig B, Bauer HC, et al. Oxidative stress and blood-brain barrier dysfunction under particular consideration of matrix metalloproteinases. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2011;15(5):1305-23. [DOI:10.1089/ars.2011.3923]
49. Capaccio P, Pignataro L, Gaini LM, Sigismund PE, Novembrino C, De Giuseppe R, et al. Unbalanced oxidative status in idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2012;269(2):449-53. [DOI:10.1007/s00405-011-1671-2]
50. Tsuzuki N, Wasano K, Oishi N, Hentona K, Shimanuki M, Nishiyama T, et al. Severe sudden sensorineural hearing loss related to risk of stroke and atherosclerosis. Sci Rep. 2021;11(1):20204. [DOI:10.1038/s41598-021-99731-w]
51. Fu P, Yung KKL. Air Pollution and Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Alzheimers Dis. 2020;77(2):701-14. [DOI:10.3233/JAD-200483]
52. Tuwaig M, Savard M, Jutras B, Poirier J, Collins DL, Rosa-Neto P, et al. PREVENT-AD Research Group. Deficit in Central Auditory Processing as a Biomarker of Pre-Clinical Alzheimer's Disease. J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;60(4):1589-600. [DOI:10.3233/JAD-170545]
53. Murata H, Barnhill LM, Bronstein JM. Air Pollution and the Risk of Parkinson's Disease: A Review. Mov Disord. 2022;37(5):894-904. [DOI:10.1002/mds.28922]
54. Verhoeven JI, Allach Y, Vaartjes ICH, Klijn CJM, de Leeuw FE. Ambient air pollution and the risk of ischaemic and haemorrhagic stroke. Lancet Planet Health. 2021;5(8):e542-52. [DOI:10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00145-5]
55. Shah AS, Lee KK, McAllister DA, Hunter A, Nair H, Whiteley W, et al. Short term exposure to air pollution and stroke: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ. 2015s;350:h1295. [DOI:10.1136/bmj.h1295]
56. Chen H, Kwong JC, Copes R, Tu K, Villeneuve PJ, van Donkelaar A, et al. Living near major roads and the incidence of dementia, Parkinson's disease, and multiple sclerosis: a population-based cohort study. Lancet. 2017;389(10070):718-26. [DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32399-6]
57. Tsai TL, Lin YT, Hwang BF, Nakayama SF, Tsai CH, Sun XL, et al. Fine particulate matter is a potential determinant of Alzheimer's disease: A systemic review and meta-analysis. Environ Res. 2019;177:108638. [DOI:10.1016/j.envres.2019.108638]
58. Lin FC, Chen CY, Lin CW, Wu MT, Chen HY, Huang P. Air Pollution Is Associated with Cognitive Deterioration of Alzheimer's Disease. Gerontology. 2022;68(1):53-61. [DOI:10.1159/000515162]
59. González-Maciel A, Reynoso-Robles R, Torres-Jardón R, Mukherjee PS, Calderón-Garcidueñas L. Combustion-Derived Nanoparticles in Key Brain Target Cells and Organelles in Young Urbanites: Culprit Hidden in Plain Sight in Alzheimer's Disease Development. J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;59(1):189-208. [DOI:10.3233/JAD-170012]
60. Calderón-Garcidueñas L, Gónzalez-Maciel A, Reynoso-Robles R, Delgado-Chávez R, Mukherjee PS, Kulesza RJ, Torres-Jardón R, et al. Hallmarks of Alzheimer disease are evolving relentlessly in Metropolitan Mexico City infants, children and young adults. APOE4 carriers have higher suicide risk and higher odds of reaching NFT stage V at ≤ 40 years of age. Environ Res. 2018;164:475-87. [DOI:10.1016/j.envres.2018.03.023]
Files
IssueArticles in Press QRcode
SectionReview Article(s)
Keywords
air pollution auditory system central auditory nervous system hearing loss otitis media sudden sensory neural hearing loss

Rights and permissions
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
1.
Gohari N, Hosseini Dastgerdi Z, Mellati A, Emami SF. Air pollution and the auditory system at risk: A narrative review. Aud Vestib Res. 2024;.