A Multi-Institutional Study of Older Hearing Aids Beginners-A Prospective Single-Arm Observation on Executive Function and Social Interaction

Yasue Uchida; Kazuyo Mise; Daiji Suzuki; Yoko Fukunaga; Nobuhiro Hakuba; Naoki Oishi; Takaki Ogawa; Mariko Takahashi; Yutaka Takumi; Shohei Fujimoto; Yukihide Maeda; Kazunori Nishizaki; Teppei Noda; Noritaka Komune; Nozomu Matsumoto; Takashi Nakagawa; Yukiko Nishita; Rei Otsuka; Azusa Maegawa; Tomomi Kimizuka; Akiko Miyata; Ayako Gonda; Kazuha Ishikawa; Yoshie Higashino; Shingo Murakami

doi:10.1016/j.jamda.2021.02.035

A Multi-Institutional Study of Older Hearing Aids Beginners-A Prospective Single-Arm Observation on Executive Function and Social Interaction

J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2021 Jun;22(6):1168-1174. doi: 10.1016/j.jamda.2021.02.035. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Authors

Yasue Uchida¹, Kazuyo Mise², Daiji Suzuki², Yoko Fukunaga², Nobuhiro Hakuba², Naoki Oishi³, Takaki Ogawa⁴, Mariko Takahashi⁵, Yutaka Takumi⁶, Shohei Fujimoto⁷, Yukihide Maeda⁷, Kazunori Nishizaki⁷, Teppei Noda⁸, Noritaka Komune⁸, Nozomu Matsumoto⁸, Takashi Nakagawa⁸, Yukiko Nishita⁹, Rei Otsuka¹⁰, Azusa Maegawa³, Tomomi Kimizuka³, Akiko Miyata¹¹, Ayako Gonda⁶, Kazuha Ishikawa⁸, Yoshie Higashino⁸, Shingo Murakami¹²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Aichi Medical University, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan; Department of Otorhinolaryngology, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Obu, Aichi, Japan. Electronic address: yasueu@aichi-med-u.ac.jp.
² Department of Otolaryngology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Mizonokuchi Hospital, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan.
³ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
⁴ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Aichi Medical University, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan; Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Middle Ear Surgical Center, Meitetsu Hospital, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.
⁵ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences and Medical School; Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Aichi Gakuin University School of Dentistry, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.
⁶ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Shinshu University School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Nagano, Japan.
⁷ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama, Japan.
⁸ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
⁹ Department of Epidemiology of Aging, Center for Gerontology and Social Science, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Obu, Aichi, Japan.
¹⁰ Section of NILS-LSA, Center for Gerontology and Social Science, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Obu, Aichi, Japan.
¹¹ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Aichi Medical University, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan.
¹² Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences and Medical School; East Medical Center, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan.

PMID: 33811828
DOI: 10.1016/j.jamda.2021.02.035

Abstract

Objectives: To obtain new insights into research questions on how executive function and social interaction would be observed to change after the introduction of hearing aids (HAs) in older people with hearing impairment.

Design: Multi-institutional prospective single-arm observational study.

Setting and participants: Outpatients with complaints of hearing difficulty who visited HA clinics between October 18, 2017, and June 30, 2019, in 7 different university hospitals in Japan.

Methods: The inclusion criteria of the study named Hearing-Aid Introduction for Hearing-Impaired Seniors to Realize a Productive Aging Society-A Study Focusing on Executive Function and Social Activities Study (HA-ProA study) were age ≥60 years and no history of HA use. A series of multi-institution common evaluations including audiometric measurements, the digit symbol substitution test to assess executive functions, convoy model as an index of social relations, and hearing handicap inventory for the elderly (HHIE) were performed before (pre-HA) and after 6 months of the HA introduction (post-HA).

Results: Out of 127 enrollments, 94 participants completed a 6-month follow-up, with a mean age of 76.9 years. The digit symbol substitution test score improved significantly from 44.7 at baseline to 46.1 at 6 months (P = .0106). In the convoy model, the social network size indicated by the number of persons in each and whole circles were not significantly different between pre- and post-HA; however, the total count for kin was significantly increased (P = .0344). In the analyses of HHIE, the items regarding the family and relatives showed significant improvement.

Conclusions and implications: HA use could benefit older individuals beginning to use HAs in executive function and social interaction, though the results should be interpreted cautiously given methodological limitations such as a single-arm short 6 months observation. Reduction in daily hearing impairment would have a favorable effect on relationships with the family.

Keywords: Age-related hearing impairment; convoy model; digit symbol substitution test (DSST); hearing aid; hearing handicap inventory for the elderly (HHIE).

Publication types

Multicenter Study
Observational Study
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Executive Function*
Hearing Aids*
Humans
Japan
Middle Aged
Prospective Studies
Social Interaction