Age Related Hearing Loss and Vestibular Dysfunction

Proposed studies aim to test interventions for aging challenges in Veterans. Aim 1A will test 17-α-estradiol treatment for ARHL. Aim 1B will examine if a combination of rapamycin and 17-α-estradiol treatments increases overall efficacy over either alone for ARHL. Aim 1C will test the efficacy of rapamycin treatment starting later in life for noise-enhanced ARHL. Aim 2A will test if treatments shown to delay/reduce ARHL also delay/reduce age-related vestibular dysfunction (ARVD). Aim 2B will test if noise overstimulation in youth influences ARVD, leading to acceleration and enhancement.