Sleep apnea may be linked to hearing loss, according to a new study. The study, which included nearly 14,000 participants, found a link between sleep apnea and low- and high-frequency hearing loss.

Study results were presented at the 2014 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

Amit Chopra, MD, lead study author, currently at the Albany Medical Center in New York, said in a statement, “In our population-based study of 13,967 subjects from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos, we found that sleep apnea was independently associated with hearing impairment at both high and low frequencies after adjustment for other possible causes of hearing loss.”

Participants successfully completed in-home sleep apnea studies as well as on-site audiometric testing at baseline. Among the 13,967 subjects, 9.9 percent had at least moderate sleep apnea, while 19 percent had high-frequency hearing impairment, 1.5 percent had low-frequency hearing impairment, and 8.4 percent had low- and high-frequency hearing impairment.

The researchers noted that the findings help to support the notion that sleep apnea does not appear to occur in isolation, and it might signal other underlying conditions.

Dr. Chopra explained, “Patients with sleep apnea are at increased risk for a number of comorbidities, including heart disease and diabetes, and our findings indicate that sleep apnea is also associated with an increased risk of hearing impairment.” He continued, “The mechanisms underlying this relationship merit further exploration. Potential pathways linking sleep apnea and hearing impairment may include adverse effects of sleep apnea on vascular supply to the cochlea via inflammation and vascular remodeling or noise trauma from snoring.”

Sleep apnea is defined by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute as a common disorder where a person has one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while asleep.