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Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the association between ear health, ear care practices, and academic performance among male adolescents in residential schools.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 684 male adolescents residing in residential schools in Deoghar, Jharkhand, India, during World Hearing Day 2023. Data were collected on socio-demographic characteristics, ear care practices, and academic performance. Comprehensive ear examinations and pure tone audiometry were performed to assess ear morbidity and hearing thresholds.Results: Ear morbidity was identified in 43% of participants, with bilateral involvement in 85% of these cases. Ear-related symptoms were reported by 26.3% of participants, including ear pain (46.1%) and hearing difficulty (37.2%). Chronic ear morbidity was present in 36.5% of the cohort. Hearing loss was detected in 5% of participants, with 4.6% experiencing mild and 0.4% moderate hearing loss; among these, 74.1% had bilateral involvement. Self-ear cleaning was commonly practiced (93%), predominantly using cotton buds (85.2%). Multivariate analysis showed that inserting substances into the ear (Spearman’s rho [ρ] = -0.095; P = 0.014), exposure to loud firecrackers (ρ = -0.095; P = 0.014), being slapped hard (ρ = -0.102; P = 0.008), presence of chronic ear morbidity (ρ = -0.185; P <0.001), and hearing loss (ρ = -0.292; P <0.001) were significantly and negatively correlated with academic performance.Conclusion: The study reveals a high prevalence of ear morbidities, which were associated with lower academic performance among the study population. Regular screenings, educational interventions and timely healthcare are crucial to protect this vulnerable group.

Publication Date

6-20-2025

First Page

600

Last Page

610

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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