Hearing Loss and Cognition in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging
By Frank R. Lin, Luigi Ferrucci, E. Jeffrey Metter, Y. An, A. Zonderman, Susan M. Resnick. Neuropsychology, 2011
650 citations recorded by the source corpus.
Objective To determine the relationship between hearing loss and cognitive function as assessed with a standardized neurocognitive battery. We hypothesized a priori that greater hearing loss is associated with lower cognitive test scores on tests of memory and executive function. Methods A cross-sectional cohort of 347 participants ≥ 55 years in the BLSA without mild cognitive impairment or dementia had audiometric and cognitive testing performed in 1990–1994. Hearing loss was defined by an average of hearing thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz in the better-hearing ear. Cognitive testing consisted of a standardized neurocognitive battery incorporating tests of mental status, memory, executive function, processing speed, and verbal function. Regression models were used to examine the association between hearing loss and cognition while adjusting for confounders. Results Greater hearing loss was significantly associated with lower scores on measures of mental status (Mini-Mental State Exam), memory (Free Recall), and executive function (Stroop Mixed, Trail Making B). These results were robust to analyses accounting for potential confounders, non-linear effects of age, and exclusion of individuals with severe hearing loss. The reduction in cognitive performance associated with a 25 dB hearing loss was equivalent to the reduction associated with an age difference of 6.8 years. Conclusion Hearing loss is independently associated with lower scores on tests of memory and executive function. Further research examining the longitudinal association of hearing loss with cognitive functioning is needed to confirm these cross-sectional findings.
Subfields: Cognitive Neuroscience, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Psychiatry and Mental health
View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/6fd781943027ef52f3fadd5087c07f91dd21f18f
How researchers see this paper
The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.
In Cognitive Neuroscience
In Psychiatry and Mental health
Citations in the corpus
- Dementia prevention, intervention, and care. (2017, neutral): “Vascular damage to the brain not only increases risk of Lin et al (2011)66 Gallacher et al (2012)67 Deal et al (2016)65 Random effects model Heterogeneity: I2=29%, tau2=0·0278, p=0·2445 Study RR (95% CI) 2·32 (1·32–4·07) 2·67 (1·38–5·17) 1·55 (1·10–2·19) 1·94 (1·38–2·73) 27·3% 21·3% 51·4%…”
- Hearing loss and cognitive decline in older adults: questions and answers (2014, background): “Results from observational epidemiologic studies of hearing loss and cognition have not found significant associations between hearing aid use and cognition [1, 24, 36, 37].”
- Association of Age-Related Hearing Loss With Cognitive Function, Cognitive Impairment, and Dementia (2017, background): “Summary Twenty-six studies were included in the analysis.(23-48) Squares represent correlation (r value); different sizes of markers, weight; diamond, overall correlation; and error bars, 95% CIs.”