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A study conducted in northern Tanzania has reported that nearly one in four adults with high blood pressure had sensorineural hearing loss, adding to a body of research examining possible links between hypertension and hearing. The findings were published in the journal Eye & ENT Research on May 27, 2026.
Researchers at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre screened 201 adults with hypertension, aged 18 to 60, using interviews, ear examinations, and pure-tone audiometry. About 24 percent met the audiometric criteria for sensorineural hearing loss, which arises from damage to the cochlea, auditory nerve, or central auditory pathways. Most cases were in both ears and mild in severity. The researchers reported that the likelihood of hearing loss rose with the duration of hypertension: among patients who had lived with high blood pressure for five or more years, about 64 percent had hearing loss, compared with a much smaller share of those with a shorter duration. Smoking was identified as the strongest adjustable risk factor. The study suggests that earlier and more effective blood pressure control, along with routine hearing screening as part of chronic illness management, may help preserve hearing.
Several caveats apply. This was a cross-sectional study at a single hospital, meaning it captures a snapshot rather than change over time, and it can identify associations but not prove that hypertension causes hearing loss.
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