Auditory Biomarkers in Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Literature Review

The prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases is escalating globally. However, the conventional diagnostic framework fails to identify the pathology until substantial neuronal damage occurs. The evidence from the recent literature indicates that auditory dysfunction commonly precedes motor and cognitive symptoms across multiple neurodegenerative diseases....

Continue reading at PubMed

✦ The floor

Discussion

Signed responses from readers of the wire.

✦ Clinical Takeaway ✦

No actionable change at this time — the review is exploratory and no auditory biomarker has reached clinical readiness for routine neurodegenerative screening.

✦ Why It Matters ✦

If validated, auditory biomarkers could offer a low-cost, non-invasive route to earlier detection of neurodegeneration, potentially expanding the audiologist's role in systemic disease screening.

✦ Key Points ✦

01Conventional diagnostics for neurodegenerative disorders detect pathology only after substantial neuronal damage has occurred.
02Auditory measures (e.g., ABR, cortical potentials, otoacoustic emissions) are proposed as candidate early biomarkers.
03The review is in the Journal of Otology (PMID 42621238; DOI 10.26599/JOTO.2026.9540067).
04Evidence is currently at the literature-review stage with no validated clinical protocol yet recommended.
05Findings highlight a potential interdisciplinary role for audiologists in early neurodegeneration screening.

✦ Claims & Evidence ✦

ClaimEvidenceSupport

Conventional diagnostics fail to detect neurodegenerative pathology until substantial neuronal damage has occurred.

studysupported

Auditory biomarkers can serve as early diagnostic tools for neurodegenerative disorders.

studypartially supported

✦ Research metadata ✦

PMID: 42621238
DOI: 10.26599/JOTO.2026.9540067.
Journal: Journal of Otology
Publication type: review
Evidence level: 1a
Population: Literature review — no direct patient population; covers studies on individuals with or at risk for neurodegenerative disorders
Intervention: Auditory biomarkers (e.g., electrophysiological and otoacoustic measures) as early diagnostic indicators

Primary outcomes

Identification of auditory biomarkers for early detection of neurodegenerative disorders; Assessment of diagnostic accuracy of auditory measures compared to conventional diagnostics

✦ Related stories ✦

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·5w ago

Impaired speech-in-noise perception in individuals with a history of hearing symptoms after noise exposure

Audiologists should consider supplementing standard audiograms with speech-in-noise testing for patients reporting noise-exposure symptoms, as normal thresholds alone may miss clinically meaningful hearing dysfunction consistent with cochlear synaptopathy (hidden hearing loss).

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·3mo ago

Effects of Hearing Intervention on Cognitive Function in Patients with Presbycusis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis provides the strongest available evidence that hearing intervention positively impacts cognitive function in older adults with age-related hearing loss; audiologists should use these findings to counsel patients and reinforce the...

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·2mo ago

The Genetic Causes of Auditory Neuropathy: A Systematic Review

Genetic testing for auditory neuropathy is clinically meaningful because the causative gene can influence cochlear implant candidacy and expected outcomes; audiologists should advocate for genetic workup in confirmed auditory neuropathy cases.

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·2mo ago

Hearing Loss in Adults With Diabetes and Prediabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Audiologists should consider routine hearing screening for adult patients with known diabetes or prediabetes, as this meta-analysis provides strong epidemiological evidence linking both conditions to increased prevalence and severity of hearing loss.

PubMed·Preprint·Research (general)·6w ago

Older adults show overexaggerated and larger noise-related degradation in their neural tracking of speech

This finding suggests age-related declines in how the brain tracks speech in noise go beyond peripheral hearing loss; audiologists should be cautious attributing all speech-in-noise difficulty in older adults to the audiogram alone, though the preprint has not yet been...

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·8w ago

ATP6V1B1-A Novel Genetic Association Between Pendred Imaging Phenotype and Renal Tubular Acidosis

Audiologists and otolaryngologists encountering patients with the Pendred imaging phenotype (enlarged vestibular aqueduct/cochlear malformation pattern) should consider ATP6V1B1 mutation testing and prompt referral for renal evaluation, as co-existing distal renal tubular...

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·2d ago

Normative Ranges for Auditory Brainstem Response Wave I Amplitude: A Potential Diagnostic Indicator of Cochlear Deafferentation

These normative ranges for ABR Wave I amplitude could support clinical identification of cochlear synaptopathy in patients with normal audiograms but auditory complaints; audiologists should consider this as a supplementary diagnostic tool pending further validation in diverse...

PubMed·Journal article·Research (general)·5w ago

Restoration, Not Bypass: Otoferlin Gene Therapy and a New Era in Hearing Loss Treatment

Audiologists should be aware that FDA-approved otoferlin gene therapy (Otarmeni) is now a biological treatment option for patients with confirmed biallelic OTOF-associated SNHL; refer eligible patients to specialized otolaryngology or gene therapy centers for evaluation.