Treatable middle-ear problems tied to higher dementia risk, study suggests
A Columbia University study using NIH data from more than 300,000 U.S. adults found that two treatable middle-ear conditions—cholesteatoma and eardrum perforation—were linked with higher dementia odds (about 1.77x and over 2x, respectively), while otosclerosis showed no significant association; risk appeared to decrease somewhat with surgical treatment. The study is observational, indicating association rather than causation, and researchers note cognitive effects may be related to sensory deprivation from hearing loss.