Deterioration of hearing in older people is associated with poorer physical and mental health and more frequent hospital stays, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
As the authors of the research remind, hearing impairment is a very widespread problem among the elderly. For example, in the US, it affects two-thirds of people aged 70 and over. Analyzes show that people with deteriorating hearing function less well not only intellectually, but also physically. For example, in January 2013, an article appeared in JAMA reporting the link between hearing problems and the faster development of dementia in seniors.
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore (USA) studied the relationship between hearing impairment in older adults – aged 70 and over – and health status and the risk of hospitalization. For this purpose, they analyzed data collected in 2005-2006 and 2009-2010 as part of the large-scale American epidemiological study – National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
Hearing threshold was assessed in all participants using a method known as tonal audiometry. Information on hospital stays in the last 12 months and health status in the last month was collected using questionnaires.
It turned out that the percentage of people who stayed in the hospital in the last year was higher among those with mild to profound hearing impairment (1140 people) compared to the group with normal hearing (529 people) – 24%, respectively . and 19 percent Seniors with hearing problems were also hospitalized more often and more often felt physically and mentally ill for over 10 days.
Scientists point out that additional research is needed to clarify the basis of the observed dependencies and verify whether treatment of hearing problems can reduce hospitalization and positively affect the well-being and health of seniors (PAP).
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