ArticleEuropean archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery2026
Subjective-objective health literacy discrepancy, reduced healthcare utilization, and functional limitations associated with hearing loss.
Article in European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeHearing loss is associated with various functional outcomes. However, its relationship with health literacy and healthcare utilization remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the associations of hearing loss with health literacy and healthcare utilization.
methodsData from 3,013 adults were obtained from the Ninth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2023). Hearing status was classified as normal hearing (≤ 25 dB), mild hearing loss (> 25 to ≤ 40 dB), or moderate or worse hearing loss (> 40 dB). Subjective health literacy was assessed using a 10-item questionnaire, whereas objective health literacy was evaluated with a performance-based item. Healthcare utilization was assessed through participation in national health and cancer screening programs, and functional status was evaluated via self-reported activity limitations. Multivariable analyses were performed with adjustment for covariates.
resultsHearing thresholds were not associated with low subjective health literacy. However, worse hearing thresholds were significantly associated with inadequate objective health literacy (p = 0.001), nonparticipation in general health screening (p = 0.001) and cancer screening (p = 0.004), and restrictions in daily and social activities (p = 0.046) in multivariable analyses. Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of these associations, and the discrepancy between subjective and objective health literacy increased with hearing loss severity (both p < 0.05).
conclusionHearing loss was associated with measurable deficits in objective health literacy and reduced preventive screening participation, and functional limitations. However, individuals with hearing loss perceived their health literacy to be intact. Considering these discrepancies, tailored, multimodal communication is needed to enhance healthcare engagement.
Indexed as
Identifiers
42165885What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.