Background: Sensory impairment is common in older adults and we need to understand more about its relationship to other health conditions. We investigated the association of self-reported hearing impairment and vision impairment with lifestyle factors, chronic conditions, physical functioning, quality of life and social interaction. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 3981 men aged 63-85 years selected from general practices in 24 British towns. Data was collected by postal questionnaire including items on hearing impairment, hearing aid use, visual impairment and a wide range of lifestyle and social factors, long-term conditions, physical functioning and quality of life. Logistic regression models were used to assess relationships of visual impairment and hearing impairment with lifestyle factors, chronic conditions, physical functioning, quality of life and social interaction. Results: 27% of men (n=1074) reported hearing impairment including being able to hear with aid (n=482), being unable to hear (no aid) (n=424) and being unable to hear despite aid (n=168). 3% (n=124) reported vision impairment. Not being able to hear, irrespective of use of hearing aid, was associated with poor quality of life, poor social interaction and poor physical functioning. Only men who could not hear despite a hearing aid were more likely to report coronary heart disease (CHD) (age- adjusted odds ratios (OR) 1.89 (95%CI 1.36, 2.63) and falls (OR 1.62, 95%CI 1.05, 2.48). Vision impairment was significantly associated with symptoms of CHD including breathlessness (OR 2.06, 95%CI 1.38, 3.06) and chest pain (OR 1.58, 95%CI 1.07, 2.35) but not with diagnosed CHD. Vision impairment was also significantly associated with falls, poor quality of life, poor social interaction and poor physical functioning. Hearing impairment and vision impairment were associated with physical inactivity, obesity (hearing impairment only) and manual social class. Conclusion: Both hearing impairment and vision impairment are associated with poor physical functioning, poor health and poor social interaction in older men. Further research is warranted on pathways underlying these associations, to prevent adverse health outcomes related to sensory impairment in older adults.