Open Access
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Laryngorhinootologie 2023; 102(S 01): S35-S49
DOI: 10.1055/a-1960-4641
Referat

Interaction of Hearing and Balance

Article in several languages: deutsch | English
Ingmar Seiwerth
1   Universitätsklinik und Poliklinik für Hals-Nasen-Ohren-Heilkunde, Kopf- und Hals-Chirurgie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Universitätsklinikum Halle (Saale), Halle (Saale), Deutschland
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Abstract

There is increasingly assumed that, in addition to visual, vestibular and somatosensory afferents, hearing also plays a role in the regulation of balance. It seems that, especially in old age, progressive hearing loss is associated with a decrease in postural control. Several studies investigated this relationship in normal-hearing people, in patients with conventional hearing aids and with implantable hearing systems, as well as in patients with vestibular disorders. Despite the inhomogeneous study situation and lack of evidence, hearing seems to interact with the balance regulation system with potentially stabilizing effect. Furthermore, insights into audiovestibular interaction mechanisms could be achieved, which could possibly be integrated into therapeutic concepts of patients with vestibular disorders. However, further prospective controlled studies are necessary to bring this issue to an evidence-based level.



Publication History

Article published online:
02 May 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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