- In the elderly, hearing loss is associated with a higher prevalence of dementia.
- The prevalence increases with increasing severity of hearing loss, while decreasing with the use of hearing aids.
In a representative sample of the U.S. elderly population, with more than half of participants over 80, moderate to severe hearing loss is associated with a higher prevalence of dementia.At the same time, the use of hearing aids is associated with lower prevalence. «Hearing loss accounts for 8% of global dementia cases, making it the largest modifiable risk factor for dementia at the population level,» the researchers begin on JAMA, noting however that there are few representative estimates of the association between hearing loss and dementia among U.S. older adults.
The analysis involved data from about 2,400 participants in the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), a study of Medicare beneficiaries over the age of 65. Just over half of the seniors involved were over 80 years old.
A weighted prevalence of dementia of about 10% was observed and increased with increasing severity of hearing loss: in particular, it was 6.19% for normal hearing loss (≤ 25 dB), 8.93% for mild hearing loss (26-40 dB) and 16.52% for moderate to severe hearing loss (> 40 dB).The weighted prevalence of hearing loss was 36.74% and 29.79% for mild and moderate to severe hearing loss, respectively.
The researchers found that in the 853 participants with moderate to severe hearing loss, hearing aid use was associated with a lower prevalence of dementia. For the authors, this finding supports public health actions aimed at improving access to and provision of affordable hearing aids, as well as that of rehabilitation services by Medicare. In Italy for some categories of citizens with hearing problems there is a contribution from the National Health System for the purchase of hearing aids, but the screening on the territory and the referral of patients with hearing disorders to a specialist evaluation and the use of the devices is still lacking.
«Mediation analyses are needed to characterize the mechanisms underlying the association and randomized trials to determine the effects of interventions on hearing in reducing dementia risk,» the authors conclude.
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Source — https://www.univadis.it/viewarticle/demenza-ed-et%25C3%25A0-avanzata-un-possibile-aiuto-dagli-2023a10000sr