Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-xbtfd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-14T03:29:15.883Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Age-related hearing loss in older adults with cognitive impairment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 September 2016

Olivia Nirmalasari ,
Sara K. Mamo ,
Carrie L. Nieman ,
Allison Simpson ,
Jessica Zimmerman ,
Milap A. Nowrangi ,
Frank R. Lin  and
Esther S. Oh
Olivia Nirmalasari
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine (Geriatric), Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Sara K. Mamo*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Center on Aging and Health, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Carrie L. Nieman
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Center on Aging and Health, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Allison Simpson
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine (Geriatric), Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Jessica Zimmerman
Affiliation:
Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia, USA
Milap A. Nowrangi
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavior Sciences, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Johns Hopkins Memory and Care Program at Grand Oaks Sibley Memorial Hospital, Washington, DC, USA
Frank R. Lin
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine (Geriatric), Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Center on Aging and Health, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Esther S. Oh
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine (Geriatric), Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Department of Psychiatry and Behavior Sciences, Baltimore, Maryland, USA Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
*
Correspondence should be addressed to Sara K. Mamo, AuD PhD, Center on Aging and Health 2024 E. Monument St., Ste. 2-700 Baltimore, MD 21205–2223, USA. Phone: +443-287-7195; Fax: +410-614-9625. Email: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background:

Hearing loss can impair effective communication between caregivers and individuals with cognitive impairment. However, hearing loss is not often measured or addressed in care plans for these individuals. The aim of this study is to measure the prevalence of hearing loss and the utilization of hearing aids in a sample of individuals with cognitive impairment in a tertiary care memory clinic.

Methods:

A retrospective review of 133 charts of individuals >50 years who underwent hearing assessment at a tertiary care memory clinic over a 12-month period (June 2014–June 2015) was undertaken. Using descriptive statistics, the prevalence of hearing loss was determined and associations with demographic variables, relevant medical history, cognitive status, and hearing aid utilization were investigated.

Results:

Results indicate that hearing loss is highly prevalent among this sample of cognitively impaired older adults. Sixty percent of the sample had at least a mild hearing loss in the better hearing ear. Among variables examined, age, MMSE, and medical history of diabetes were strongly associated with hearing impairment. Hearing aid utilization increased in concordance with severity of hearing loss, from 9% to 54% of individuals with a mild or moderate/severe hearing loss, respectively.

Conclusions:

Hearing loss is highly prevalent among older adults with cognitive impairment. Despite high prevalence of hearing loss, hearing aid utilization remains low. Our study highlights the importance of hearing evaluation and rehabilitation as part of the cognitive assessment and care management plan in this vulnerable population.

Keywords

age-related hearing losscognitive impairmenthearing aid use
Type
Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 29 , Issue 1 , January 2017 , pp. 115 - 121
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agrawal, Y., Platz, E. A. and Niparko, J. K. (2009). Risk factors for hearing loss in US adults: data from the national health and nutrition examination survey, 1999 to 2002. Otology & neurotology : official publication of the American Otological Society, American Neurotology Society [and] European Academy of Otology and Neurotology, 30, 139–145.Google Scholar
Allen, N. H. et al. (2003). The effects of improving hearing in dementia. Age and Ageing, 32, 189–193.Google Scholar
Alzheimer's Association (2015). Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures. Chicago, IL: Alzheimer's Association.Google Scholar
Bainbridge, K. E. and Ramachandran, V. (2014). Hearing aid use among older U.S. adults; the national health and nutrition examination survey, 2005–2006 and 2009–2010. Ear Hear, 35, 289–94.Google Scholar
Bess, F. H., Lichtenstein, M. J., Logan, S. A., Burger, M. C. and Nelson, E. (1989). Hearing impairment as a determinant of function in the elderly. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 37, 123–128.Google Scholar
Chien, W. and Lin, F. R. (2012). Prevalence of hearing aid use among older adults in the United States. Archives of Internal Medicine, 172, 292–293.Google Scholar
Da Costa Lopes, L., Magaldi, R. M., Gândara, M. E. R., De Barros Reis, A. C. and Jacob-Filho, W. (2007). Prevalence of hearing impairment in patients with mild cognitive impairment. Dementia & Neuropsychologia, 1, 253–259.Google Scholar
Fisher, D. et al. (2014). Impairments in hearing and vision impact on mortality in older people: the AGES-reykjavik study. Age and Ageing, 43, 69–76.Google Scholar
Gallacher, J. et al. (2012). Auditory threshold, phonologic demand, and incident dementia. Neurology, 79, 1583–1590.Google Scholar
Gates, G. A., Cobb, J. L., D'agostino, R. B. and Wolf, P. A. (1993). The relation of hearing in the elderly to the presence of cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular risk factors. Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, 119, 156–161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gispen, F. E., Chen, D. S., Genther, D. J. and Lin, F. R. (2014). Association between hearing impairment and lower levels of physical activity in older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 62, 1427–1433.Google Scholar
Gold, M., Lightfoot, L. A. and Hnath-Chisolm, T. (1996). Hearing loss in a memory disorders clinic: a specially vulnerable population. Archives of Neurology, 53, 922–928.Google Scholar
Jorgensen, L. E., Palmer, C. V., Pratt, S., Erickson, K. I. and Moncrieff, D. (2015). The effect of decreased audibility on MMSE performance: a measure commonly used for diagnosing dementia. Journal of American Academy of Audiology, 27, 311–323.Google Scholar
Karpa, M. J. et al. (2010). Associations between hearing impairment and mortality risk in older persons: the blue mountains hearing study. Annals of Epidemiology, 20, 452–459.Google Scholar
Kay, D. W., Roth, M. and Beamish, P. (1964). Old age mental disorders in newcastle upon tyne. Ii. a study of possible social and medical causes. The British Journal of Psychiatry: The Journal of Mental Science, 110, 668–682.Google Scholar
Kiely, K. M., Gopinath, B., Mitchell, P., Luszcz, M. and Anstey, K. J. (2012). Cognitive, health, and sociodemographic predictors of longitudinal decline in hearing acuity among older adults. The Journals of Gerontology. Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 67, 997–1003.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Knudsen, L. V., Oberg, M., Nielsen, C., Naylor, G. and Kramer, S. E. (2010). Factors influencing help seeking, hearing aid uptake, hearing aid use and satisfaction with hearing aids: a review of the literature. Trends in Amplification, 14, 127–154.Google Scholar
Kreeger, J. L., Raulin, M. L., Grace, J. and Priest, B. L. (1995). Effect of hearing enhancement on mental status ratings in geriatric psychiatric patients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 152, 629–31.Google Scholar
Kuzuya, M. and Hirakawa, Y. (2009). Increased caregiver burden associated with hearing impairment but not vision impairment in disabled community-dwelling older people in Japan. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 57, 357–358.Google Scholar
Lin, F. R. et al. (2013). Hearing loss and cognitive decline in older adults. JAMA Internal Medicine, 173, 293–299.Google Scholar
Lin, F. R., Metter, E. J., O'brien, R. J., Resnick, S. M., Zonderman, A. B. and Ferrucci, L. (2011a). Hearing loss and incident dementia. Archives of Neurology, 68, 214–220.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lin, F. R., Niparko, J. K. and Ferrucci, L. (2011b). Hearing loss prevalence in the United States. Archives of Internal Medicine, 171, 1851–1853.Google Scholar
Macdonald, A. A., Joyson, A., Lee, R., Seymour, D. G. and Soiza, R. L. (2012). The effect of hearing augmentation on cognitive assessment scales at admission to hospital. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry, 20, 355–61.Google Scholar
Mener, D. J., Betz, J., Genther, D. J., Chen, D. and Lin, F. R. (2013). Hearing loss and depression in older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 61, 1627–1629.Google Scholar
Mick, P., Kawachi, I. and Lin, F. R. (2014). The association between hearing loss and social isolation in older adults. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery: Official Journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, 150, 378–384.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mulrow, C. D. et al. (1990). Quality-of-life changes and hearing impairment: a randomized trial. Annals of Internal Medicine, 113, 188–194.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nieman, C. L., Marrone, N., Szanton, S. L., Thorpe, R. J. and Lin, F. R. (2016). Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in hearing health care among older americans. Journal of Aging Health, 28, 68–94.Google Scholar
Palmer, C. V., Adams, S. W., Bourgeois, M., Durrant, J. and Rossi, M. (1999). Reduction in caregiver-identified problem behaviors in patients with Alzheimer disease post-hearing-aid fitting. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 42, 312–328.Google Scholar
Wallhagen, M. I., Strawbridge, W. J. and Shema, S. J. (2008). The relationship between hearing impairment and cognitive function: a 5-year longitudinal study. Research in Gerontological Nursing, 1, 80–86.Google Scholar
Weinstein, B. E. and Ventry, I. M. (1982). Hearing Impairment and Social Isolation int he Elderly. J Speech Hear Res, 25, 593–599.Google Scholar