The aim of this study was to explore the association between employment status and World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule, Second Edition (WHODAS 2.0) scores of working-age subjects with hearing impairment. The data of 18,573 working-age subjects (age ≥ 18 and <65 years) with disabling hearing impairment were obtained from the Taiwan Data Bank of Persons with Disability (TDPD) for the period from 11 July 2012 to 31 October 2018. Demographic data and WHODAS 2.0 scores for each domain were analyzed to identify their relationship with employment status. Unemployed subjects with disabling hearing impairment had higher WHODAS 2.0 scores in all domains compared with the employed subjects. Binary logistic regression revealed that older age, female sex, lower educational level, institutional residence, rural residence, lower family income, and moderate to severe impairment were more strongly associated with unemployment status. The data in this large population-based study offer comprehensive information on important factors associated with the employment status of people with disabling hearing impairment. Early identification of risks of unemployment of patients with hearing impairment can raise awareness for aggressive community and government campaigns regarding public health to improve the self-confidence, social participation, and related psycho-social wellbeing of people.

Objective: Because there are few population-based studies regarding the epidemiology of benign voice diseases, the present study used a nationwide population-based claims database (the National Health Insurance Research Database) to investigate the epidemiology of benign voice diseases among the general adult population in Taiwan. Methods: Study participants were retrieved for those patients who were 20 to 90 years old with a diagnosis of benign voice diseases that were defined by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes from 2006 to 2014. Patient visits were grouped into infectious (ICD-9-CM: 012.3, 032.3, 034.0, 090.5, 095.8,101, 464.0, 464.20, 464.21, 465.x, 476.0, 476.1) and noninfectious (ICD-9-CM: 306.1, 478.3x, 478.4, 478.5, 748.3, 784.4x) dysphonia groups. Results: Benign voice disorders have a prevalence of approximately 3.6% in Taiwan as of 2014. The year-to-year prevalence decreased gradually in the query period. Infectious dysphonia diagnoses were higher than noninfectious ones. Dysphonia caused by noninfectious diagnoses was most prevalent in the 60 to 79 years age group. Dysphonia caused by infectious diagnoses was highest in 20 to 39 years group. Noninfectious dysphonia diagnoses were more common in women. Conclusion: The prevalence of voice disorders among the adult population in Taiwan was 3.6% in 2014. Voice disorders are more common in women and occur primarily in the 20 to 39 years age group. Infectious dysphonia is more common than noninfectious dysphonia. The results may be underestimated due to limitation of the database. This is the first population-based epidemiology study of adult voice disorders.

Background: Because of its intricate and varied structure, the frontal sinus is difficult to surgically access. In order to improve surgical precision, the International Frontal Sinus Anatomy Classification (IFAC) presents a standardized nomenclature of cells in the frontal sinus and frontal recess. This study examines frontal sinus cell prevalence in Taiwanese and worldwide populations. Methods: In total, 284 sides were gathered from 142 computed tomography (CT) scans in this retrospective analysis during January 2019 to April 2019, with independent assessments for the left and right sides. The IFAC was used to determine the prevalence of each kind of frontal sinus cells. Frontal rhinosinusitis was diagnosed through CT scans and evaluated using the Lund-Mackay score. In addition, the PubMed databases was used to search for articles analyzing the prevalence of frontal sinus cells based on the IFAC. A total of 11 articles were analyzed, including our analysis of the prevalence in the Taiwanese population. (Trial registration: N202305004. Registered 19 May 2023.) Results: With an appearance in 90.5 percent of the patients in the Taiwanese population and 92.5 percent in worldwide, the agger nasi cells were the most frequently occurring cell in both Taiwanese and global populations. In 17.3 percent of instances, frontal sinusitis was present; in 82.8 percent of cases, it was missing. None of the frontal cell variations were shown to be significantly associated with the development of frontal sinusitis (all p > 0.05). Conclusion: This study documents the prevalence of frontal cell types based on the IFAC system in a Taiwanese and the global population. While this article did not establish a direct association between frontal sinus cells and frontal sinusitis, these frontal sinus cells do indeed influence the drainage of frontal sinus secretions. Therefore, comprehensively categorizing frontal sinus cells through the IFAC system can provide valuable insights for future surgeries and related research.