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<p>Hearing loss poses a significant public health challenge in rural India, where access to specialized care is limited. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and profile of hearing loss and ear diseases among adults in three underserved villages of rural Chhattisgarh.&#xa0;A community-based cross-sectional screening camp was conducted. A door-to-door symptom survey was first carried out by trained ASHA and Mitanin community health workers. Individuals identified with symptoms or risk were referred to a central camp. Here, participants underwent ENT examination via otoscopy and audiologic evaluation, including pure-tone audiometry and otoacoustic emissions, conducted within a sound-treated booth installed in a mobile bus. Test environment alignment followed ANSI/ASA S3.1 standards for ambient noise measurement, and hearing thresholds were obtained using the modified Hughson–Westlake (1959) procedure.&#xa0;Of the 284 individuals who attended the camp, 96 were found to have hearing loss, yielding a prevalence of 33.8% (among the screened sample 95% CI: 28.3%–39.3%). Conductive hearing loss was the most common type (55.2%, <i>n</i> = 53), followed by sensorineural (34.4%, <i>n</i> = 33) and mixed (10.4%, <i>n</i> = 10). Age-wise analysis demonstrated that conductive hearing loss predominated among younger and middle-aged adults, whereas sensorineural hearing loss increased with advancing age and was most frequent among participants aged over 60 years. Common etiologies for conductive loss included tympanic membrane perforation (26.4%), impacted cerumen (18.9%), and active otorrhea (7.5%). Predisposing risk factors such as pond-water bathing and unsafe ear cleaning practices were widely reported.&#xa0;This study reveals a high camp detected burden of hearing loss in rural Chhattisgarh, largely dominated by preventable conductive pathologies. The findings underscore a critical unmet need for audiologic and otologic services and demonstrate the viability of a community-based screening model leveraging the existing ASHA/Mitanin network to bridge the healthcare gap in remote areas.</p>

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Hearing Loss and Ear Disease in Rural Chhattisgarh: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study in Three Villages

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年4月18日

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  • Shashank Nema,
  • Satish Suresh Satpute,
  • Renu Rajguru

摘要

Hearing loss poses a significant public health challenge in rural India, where access to specialized care is limited. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and profile of hearing loss and ear diseases among adults in three underserved villages of rural Chhattisgarh. A community-based cross-sectional screening camp was conducted. A door-to-door symptom survey was first carried out by trained ASHA and Mitanin community health workers. Individuals identified with symptoms or risk were referred to a central camp. Here, participants underwent ENT examination via otoscopy and audiologic evaluation, including pure-tone audiometry and otoacoustic emissions, conducted within a sound-treated booth installed in a mobile bus. Test environment alignment followed ANSI/ASA S3.1 standards for ambient noise measurement, and hearing thresholds were obtained using the modified Hughson–Westlake (1959) procedure. Of the 284 individuals who attended the camp, 96 were found to have hearing loss, yielding a prevalence of 33.8% (among the screened sample 95% CI: 28.3%–39.3%). Conductive hearing loss was the most common type (55.2%, n = 53), followed by sensorineural (34.4%, n = 33) and mixed (10.4%, n = 10). Age-wise analysis demonstrated that conductive hearing loss predominated among younger and middle-aged adults, whereas sensorineural hearing loss increased with advancing age and was most frequent among participants aged over 60 years. Common etiologies for conductive loss included tympanic membrane perforation (26.4%), impacted cerumen (18.9%), and active otorrhea (7.5%). Predisposing risk factors such as pond-water bathing and unsafe ear cleaning practices were widely reported. This study reveals a high camp detected burden of hearing loss in rural Chhattisgarh, largely dominated by preventable conductive pathologies. The findings underscore a critical unmet need for audiologic and otologic services and demonstrate the viability of a community-based screening model leveraging the existing ASHA/Mitanin network to bridge the healthcare gap in remote areas.