Psychosocial Health and Hearing Loss
Nachtegaal, Smit, Smits, et al (2009) used an adaptive speech-in-noise screening test (suitable for phone-based or Internet-based applications) to evaluate 1,511 participants (546 men and 965 women) with regard to psychosocial health and hearing loss in young adults. Participants' average age was 46.3 years, standard deviation was 12.5 years. Participant age range was from 18 to 70 years. Of the participants, 355 (23.5 percent) reported owning hearing aids.
The study was conducted in the Netherlands using the national hearing test (Smits, et al 2004). The test uses digit triplets (example "7-2-9") within an adaptive (one-up, one-down) background noise to determine the 50 percent "speech reception threshold," using the average signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the previous 20 presentations.
The authors noted no gender differences were found relating to depression, loneliness, or anxiety. However, "hearing impairment inevitably affects health-related quality of life." Psychological, social functioning, and emotional functioning (including depression, loneliness, anxiety, distress, and somatization) were negatively influenced by hearing loss, more so than mobility or activities of daily living.
Multiple linear regression analyses showed participants with hearing loss demonstrated significantly more stress and somatization than people with better hearing. For every dB SNR reduction, distress and somatization increased 2 percent. For every dB SNR reduction, the odds for severe or very severe loneliness increased 7 percent. Thus, significant adverse relationships between hearing loss (in particular, the ability to understand speech in noisy situations) and psychosocial functioning were determined for people between the ages of 18 and 70 years.
For More Information, References and Recommendations:
Nachtegaal J, Smit JH, Smits, C, Bezemer PD, van Beek JHM, Festen JM, Kramer SE. (2009) The Association Between Hearing Status and Psychosocial Health Before the Age of 70 Years: Results From an Internet-Based National Survey on Hearing. Ear and Hearing. Vol 30, No 3., Pages 302-312.
Smits C, Kapteryn TS, Houtgast T. (2004) Development and Validation of an Automatic Speech-In-Noise Screening Test by Telephone. International Journal of Audiology. Vol 43. Pages 15-28.