Hearing loss and cognitive decline

Hello and welcome back to the Peter Byrom Audiology blog! You may remember that last month I shared some good news stories from the year so far. Well, this month I can bring you some more interesting news, this time from a new clinical study looking at cognitive decline.

What do you mean by cognitive decline?

Cognitive decline is the expected increase of memory loss, confusion etc that we would expect with normal ageing. The rate at which this happens varies greatly among individuals; from the odd moment of uncertainty through to conditions such as Dementia and Alzheimer’s. The study focused on mild cognitive impairment (MCI) which falls somewhere in the middle of that spectrum: a demonstrable decline in cognitive abilities greater than normal age-related changes, but not severe enough to meet diagnostic criteria for dementia.

Who was in the study?

The study looked at around 4,000 people over the age of 40, around 10% of which were hearing aid wearers. The participants’ cognitive and functional skills were given a score based on:

• Memory
• Orientation
• Judgement and problem-solving
• Community Affairs
• Home and hobbies
• Personal care

The scores were then evaluated against any additional clinical information for MCI as well as how the participants reported their hearing and hearing aid use.

What were the findings?

The researchers found that people with hearing loss were at significantly higher risk of developing MCI than people with normal hearing.

However, people with hearing loss who wore their hearing aids had a significantly reduced risk of MCI.

One of the authors of the paper, Dr Bucholc said:

‘Our latest paper demonstrates that hearing aid use is linked to lower rates of cognitive decline and reduced risk of MCI in cognitively healthy adults, with hearing aid users having more than 50% lower risk of MCI compared to those not using hearing aids. Importantly, we found that no significant differences in risk of developing MCI and cognitive decline exist between participants experiencing no hearing loss and those diagnosed with hearing impairment using hearing aids.’

What does this mean?

This study underlines the importance of ensuring that if you need to wear hearing aids, that you wear them. It sounds obvious, but I have seen enough patients over the years to know that a lot of hearing aids are left in bedside drawers!

Next month I’ll be looking at some common reasons why people don’t wear their hearing aids.

Further reading

If you would like to find out more about this study then you can read about it here:

https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/trc2.12248

Also, if you feel that even with your hearing aids you are still struggling, you might want to check out one of last year’s articles on brain training.

This is a great way to use the technology in your hearing aids alongside an approach that tackles the natural ageing process. Many people find that this additional training unlocks a part of hearing that, with your hearing aids, gives noticeable results.

You can find that article here:

As always, thank you for reading and I’ll see you back here next month!

Take care,

Peter