This article from The Hearing Review offers terrific insight into a new long-term study that shows how wearing hearing aids can reduce cognitive decline associated with hearing loss, and may motivate older adults to finally seek the professional care they need.
The study a Self-Reported Hearing Loss: Hearing Aids and Cognitive Decline in Elderly Adults: A 25-year Study, was produced by the company Oticon and published in the October edition of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
In essence, it compared the trajectory of cognitive decline among older adults who were using hearing aids and those who were not.
The study found no difference in the rate of cognitive decline between a control group of people with no reported hearing loss and people with hearing loss who used hearing aids.
By contrast, untreated hearing loss was significantly associated with lower cognitive baseline scores.
The article then goes on to point out:
- Other quality of life improvements
- Helping the brain make sense of sound
- How hearing care is health care
To see the full set of conclusions and recommendations from the study, please click here.
