5 Key Takeaways

• 1

  Increased use of sleep medications over nearly 30 years correlates with worse hearing in later life.

• 2

  The study analyzed data from 3,102 adults from the late 1980s to 2017, focusing on sleep medication use and hearing tests.

• 3

  Participants were categorized into nonusers, increasing users, and continuous users based on their medication use.

• 4

  Those who increased sleep medication use had an average PTA score 1.61 decibels higher than nonusers, indicating worse hearing.

• 5

  The association between sleep medication use and hearing loss was stronger in those without sleep difficulties.