• Monika Mitra, Ilhom Akobirshoev, Michael M McKee, and Lisa I Iezzoni.
• Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts. Electronic address: mmitra@brandeis.edu.
• Am J Prev Med. 2016 Dec 1; 51 (6): 865-873.

IntroductionThe purpose of this study is to estimate the national occurrence of deliveries in women with hearing loss and to compare their birth outcomes to women without hearing loss.MethodsThis study examined the 2008-2011 Nationwide Inpatient Sample of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project in 2015 to compare birth outcomes in women with hearing loss and without. Birth outcomes included preterm birth and low birth weight. Multivariate regression analyses compared birth outcomes between women with and without hearing loss, controlling for maternal age, racial and ethnic identity, type of health insurance, comorbidity, region of hospital, location and teaching status of the hospital, ownership of the hospital, and median household income for mother's ZIP code.ResultsOf an estimated 17.9 million deliveries, 10,462 occurred in women with hearing loss. In adjusted regression analyses controlling for demographic characteristics, women with hearing loss were significantly more likely than those without hearing loss to have preterm birth (OR=1.28, 95% CI=1.08, 1.52, p<0.001) and low birth weight (OR=1.43, 95% CI=1.09, 1.90, p<0.05).ConclusionsThis study provides a first examination of the pregnancy outcomes among women with hearing loss in the U.S. This analysis demonstrates significant disparities in birth outcomes between women with and without hearing loss. Understanding and addressing the causes of these disparities is critical to improving pregnancy outcomes among women with hearing loss.Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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