Hearing intervention slows cognitive decline in some older adults

Key takeaways:

• The intervention slowed cognitive decline by 48% in older adults at increased risk for decline.
• The researchers said the results indicate interventions may differ in effectiveness across various populations.

A hearing intervention may slow cognitive decline in older adults with mild to moderate hearing loss, according to a poster presentation at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference.

“The positive results with the hearing intervention in the ARIC subgroup analysis are encouraging and warrant further investigation,” Maria C. Carrillo, PhD, chief science officer of the Alzheimer’s Association, said in a press release. “Previous research has identified hearing loss as potentially the single largest dementia risk factor that can be addressed or modified with existing tools that remain underutilized.”

In the first randomized control trial to investigate the effects of hearing intervention on long-term cognitive change in cognitively healthy older adults, Frank R. Lin, MD, PhD, of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health, and colleagues conducted a study including 238 adults who were participating in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study and 739 healthy community volunteers. The intervention group (n = 490) used hearing aids and ongoing counseling with an audiologist, while the control group (n = 487) participated in talk sessions with a health educator about chronic disease progression over a 3-year study period.

The researchers found that the hearing intervention slowed cognitive decline in older adults with mild to moderate hearing loss by 48%. However, while the intervention made a significant impact on those with increased risk for cognitive decline and dementia, it showed no significant effect on reducing cognitive decline in those at decreased risk of cognitive decline, suggesting that hearing interventions may differ in effectiveness across various populations, the researchers wrote.

“The hearing intervention had a significant effect on reducing cognitive change within three years in the population of older adults in the study who are at increased risk for cognitive decline,” Lin said in the press release. “Hearing loss is very treatable in later life, which makes it an important public health target to reduce risk of cognitive decline and dementia, along with other dementia risk factors such as less education in early life, high blood pressure, social isolation and physical inactivity.”

Reference:

• Hearing aids slow cognitive decline in older adults with hearing loss and at risk for cognitive decline. https://aaic.alz.org/releases_2023/hearing-aids-slow-cognitive-decline.asp. Published July 18, 2023. Accessed July 18, 2023.
• Lin FR, et al. Lancet. 2023;doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01406-X.