Hearing loss is a modifiable risk factor for dementia in older adults. Whether hearing aid use can delay the onset of cognitive decline is unknown. Participants in this study (aged 62–82 years) were assessed before and 18 months after hearing aid fitting on hearing, cognitive function, speech perception, quality of life, physical activity, loneliness, isolation, mood, and medical health. At baseline, multiple linear regression showed hearing loss and age predicted significantly poorer executive function performance, while tertiary education predicted significantly higher executive function and visual learning performance. At 18 months after hearing aid fitting, speech perception in quiet, self-reported listening disability and quality of life had significantly improved. Group mean scores across the cognitive test battery showed no significant decline, and executive function significantly improved. Reliable Change Index scores also showed either clinically significant improvement or stability in executive function for 97.3% of participants, and for females for working memory, visual attention and visual learning. Relative stability and clinically and statistically significant improvement in cognition were seen in this participant group after 18 months of hearing aid use, suggesting that treatment of hearing loss with hearing aids may delay cognitive decline. Given the small sample size, further follow up is required.

Purpose: This study aimed to describe and compare the performance of two screening protocols used for preschool hearing screening in resource-constrained settings. Method: Secondary data analysis was done to determine the performance of two protocols implemented during a preschool hearing screening program using mobile health technology in South Africa. Pure-tone audiometry screening at 25 dB HL for 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz in each ear was used by both protocols. The fail criterion for the first protocol (2,147 children screened) constituted a no-response on one or more frequencies in either ear. The second protocol required two or more no-responses (5,782 children). Multivariate logistic regression models were used to investigate associations between outcomes and protocol, age, gender, and duration. Results: Fail rates for the one-frequency fail protocol was 8.7% ( n = 186) and 4.3% ( n = 250) for the two-frequency fail protocol. Children screened with the two-frequency fail protocol were 52.9% less likely to fail ( p < .001; OR = 0.471; 95% confidence interval [0.385, 0.575]). Gender ( p = .251) and age ( p = .570) had no significant effect on screening outcome. A percentage of cases screened (44.7%) exceeded permissible noise levels in at least one ear at 1000 Hz across both protocols. True- and false-positive cases did not differ significantly between protocols. Protocol type ( p = .204), gender ( p = .314), and age ( p = .982) did not affect the odds of being a true-positive result. Average screening time was 72.8 s (78.66 SD ) and 64.9 s (55.78 SD ) for the one-frequency and two-frequency fail protocols, respectively. Conclusions: A two-frequency fail criterion and immediate rescreen of failed frequencies significantly reduced referral rate for follow-up services that are often overburdened in resourced-constrained settings. Future protocol adaptations can also consider increasing the screening levels at 1000 Hz to minimize the influence of environmental noise.

Background: Hearing loss is associated with accelerated cognitive decline in older adults, and has been identified as a modifiable risk factor for dementia. Although hearing aids are a successful treatment for hearing loss, it is unknown whether hearing aid use can delay the onset of cognitive decline or improve cognitive function in older adults with hearing loss. This prospective longitudinal study is investigating the effect of hearing aid use on cognitive decline and addresses many of the methodological limitations of previous studies.Method: Patients are recruited from the University of Melbourne Academic Hearing Aids Audiology Clinic and assessed before and every 18 months after hearing aid fitting. When numbers are sufficient, results will be compared with those of a control group of approximately 400 participants of a cohort study of ageing in older adults. Assessments include cognitive function (visually presented computerised assessment battery), hearing, speech perception, quality of life, activity, diet, loneliness and isolation, anxiety, depression, medical health and genetic risk.Result: At baseline, multiple linear regression for 98 participants (62‐82 years), controlling for age, gender, cardiovascular conditions, education, and working/retired, with mean better ear PTA 31dB showed hearing loss and age predicted significantly poorer executive function, while tertiary education predicted significantly better executive function and visual learning. At 18‐month follow up, results for a subset of participants showed significant improvements in speech perception, listening disability and quality of life. Group mean scores across the cognitive assessment battery showed no significant decline and executive function was significantly improved. There was either clinically significant improvement or stability for executive function for over 97% of the subset, and for females for working memory, visual learning and visual attention, despite significantly greater hearing loss over this period.Conclusion: Despite a small initial sample size, hearing loss, age and education significantly predicted baseline cognitive function. At 18‐month follow up, the majority of participants had either remained stable or demonstrated a meaningful clinical improvement in cognitive function, with significant group mean improvements for executive function and working memory. Treatment of hearing loss with hearing aids may delay cognitive decline. These are initial results, and further follow up is required.

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to provide a viewpoint on the recently published results showing the positive effect hearing intervention can have on mitigating the risk of cognitive decline in elderly individuals with hearing impairment. We intend to trigger a broader discussion on the implications of these results from an implementation science perspective. Methods: Recently published results were reviewed and contextualized. Results: In our view, these recent findings provide a great opportunity for hearing care professionals to change the perspective on hearing care being an essential service that contributes not only to managing challenges with audibility but to enabling healthy living and aging. Conclusion: As exciting as these findings are, from our perspective, they are also a call to action for the audiology field in terms of clinical implementation science. The findings guide us toward a more interprofessional approach in order to develop and test new, more holistic models of hearing care.

Employing automated language analysis, specifically Meaning Extraction Method (MEM) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA), to identify key factors in open-text responses about hearing aid experiences. Exploratory, cross-sectional design, using an online questionnaire. Responses to a single open-ended question were analysed using MEM, PCA, regression, and correlation analyses. Participants (n = 538) included adult hearing aid users sampled from the Hearing Tracker website community and Lexie Hearing user databases in the United States. The MEM-derived items revealed six factors related to hearing aid experiences: (1) life change, (2) social situation, (3) quality of life, (4) impact and speech understanding, (5) communication and interaction, and (6) music and environmental sounds. IOI-HA item 3 had the most statistically significant correlations with PCA factors. Quantile regression revealed that factors one and two significantly predicted the IOI-HA total score. Positive correlations were observed between self-reported hearing difficulty and factors one, four, and five, as well as between factor one and general health and factor two and physical activity. Natural language analysis of open-ended textual responses can offer valuable insights into hearing aid users' experiences. Future studies should aim to refine this methodology to enhance clinical relevance and generalisability.