Tackling the Toll of Hearing Loss on Executive Function

Purpose The aims of this study were to (a) determine if a high-quality adaptation of an audiovisual nonword repetition task can be completed by children with wide-ranging hearing abilities and to (b) examine whether performance on that task is sensitive to child demographics, hearing status, language, working memory, and executive function abilities. Method An audiovisual version of a nonword repetition task was adapted and administered to 100 school-aged children grouped by hearing status: 35 with normal hearing, 22 with mild bilateral hearing loss, 17 with unilateral hearing loss, and 26 cochlear implant users. Participants also completed measures of vocabulary, working memory, and executive function. A generalized linear mixed-effects model was used to analyze performance on the nonword repetition task. Results All children were able to complete the nonword repetition task. Children with unilateral hearing loss and children with cochlear implants repeated nonwords with less accuracy than normal-hearing peers. After adjusting for the influence of vocabulary and working memory, main effects were found for syllable length and hearing status, but no interaction effect was observed. Conclusions The audiovisual nonword repetition task captured individual differences in the performance of children with wide-ranging hearing abilities. The task could act as a useful tool to aid in identifying children with unilateral or mild bilateral hearing loss who have language impairments beyond those imposed by the hearing loss.

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The Effect of Hearing Aid Use on Cognition in Older Adults: Can We Delay Decline or Even Improve Cognitive Function?

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm9010254 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 254 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Julia Sarant ◽

David Harris ◽

Peter Busby ◽

Paul Maruff ◽

Adrian Schembri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Older Adults ◽

Hearing Loss ◽

Executive Function ◽

Speech Perception ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Hearing Aid ◽

Visual Learning ◽

Hearing Aid Use

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.

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Fluorocitrate Neural Dystrophy of the Guinea Pig Cochlea

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100115468 ◽

1975 ◽

Vol 33 ◽

pp. 368-369

Author(s):

G.J. Spector ◽

C.D. Carr ◽

I. Kaufman Arenberg ◽

R.H. Maisel

Keyword(s):

Hearing Loss ◽

Hair Cells ◽

Sodium Phosphate ◽

Sensory Cells ◽

Barium Salt ◽

Perfusion Medium ◽

Cochlear Hair Cells ◽

Neural Degeneration ◽

Sodium Phosphate Buffer ◽

Cochlear Neurons

All studies on primary neural degeneration in the cochlea have evaluated the end stages of degeneration or the indiscriminate destruction of both sensory cells and cochlear neurons. We have developed a model which selectively simulates the dystrophic changes denoting cochlear neural degeneration while sparing the cochlear hair cells. Such a model can be used to define more precisely the mechanism of presbycusis or the hearing loss in aging man.Twenty-two pigmented guinea pigs (200-250 gm) were perfused by the perilymphatic route as live preparations using fluorocitrate in various concentrations (15-250 ug/cc) and at different incubation times (5-150 minutes). The barium salt of DL fluorocitrate, (C6H4O7F)2Ba3, was reacted with 1.0N sulfuric acid to precipitate the barium as a sulfate. The perfusion medium was prepared, just prior to use, as follows: sodium phosphate buffer 0.2M, pH 7.4 = 9cc; fluorocitrate = 15-200 mg/cc; and sucrose = 0.2M.

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Teacher Identification of Elementary School Children with Hearing Loss

Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools ◽

10.1044/0161-1461.0901.24 ◽

1978 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 24-28 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Richard H. Nodar

Keyword(s):

Elementary School ◽

Hearing Loss ◽

School Children ◽

Elementary School Children ◽

Total Sample ◽

Hearing Impaired ◽

Teacher Interviews ◽

Teacher Screening ◽

Children With Hearing Loss ◽

Hearing Problems

The teachers of 2231 elementary school children were asked to identify those with known or suspected hearing problems. Following screening, the data were compared. Teachers identified 5% of the children as hearing-impaired, while screening identified only 3%. There was agreement between the two procedures on 1%. Subsequent to the teacher interviews, rescreening and tympanometry were conducted. These procedures indicated that teacher screening and tympanometry were in agreement on 2% of the total sample or 50% of the hearing-loss group. It was concluded that teachers could supplement audiometry, particularly when otoscopy and typanometry are not available.

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A Clinical Study of Twenty-seven Children Exhibiting Functional Hearing Loss

Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools ◽

10.1044/0161-1461.1201.26 ◽

1981 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 26-35 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Donald L. McCanna ◽

Giacinto DeLapa

Keyword(s):

Hearing Loss ◽

Clinical Study ◽

Early Identification ◽

Behavioral Responses ◽

Upper Elementary ◽

Elementary Grades ◽

Ability Level ◽

Hearing Problem

This report reviews 27 cases of children exhibiting functional hearing loss. The study reveals that most students were in the upper elementary grades and were predominantly females. These subjects were functioning below their ability level in school and were usually in conflict with school, home, or peers. Tests used were selected on the basis of their helping to provide early identification. The subjects' oral and behavioral responses are presented, as well as ways of resolving the hearing problem. Some helpful counseling techniques are also presented.

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Dimensions of Multiskilling

Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools ◽

10.1044/0161-1461.3001.04 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 30 (1) ◽

pp. 4-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Carole E. Johnson

Keyword(s):

Hearing Loss ◽

Service Delivery ◽

Monitoring Program ◽

School Age Children ◽

School Age ◽

Support Personnel ◽

Educational Personnel ◽

Educational Audiology ◽

Children With Hearing Loss ◽

Improve Service Delivery

Educational audiologists often must delegate certain tasks to other educational personnel who function as support personnel and need training in order to perform assigned tasks. Support personnel are people who, after appropriate training, perform tasks that are prescribed, directed, and supervised by a professional such as a certified and licensed audiologist. The training of support personnel to perform tasks that are typically performed by those in other disciplines is calledmultiskilling. This article discusses multiskilling and the use of support personnel in educational audiology in reference to the following principles: guidelines, models of multiskilling, components of successful multiskilling, and "dos and don’ts" for multiskilling. These principles are illustrated through the use of multiskilling in the establishment of a hearing aid monitoring program. Successful multiskilling and the use of support personnel by educational audiologists can improve service delivery to school-age children with hearing loss.

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The Relationship Between Hearing Loss Self-Management and Hearing Aid Benefit and Satisfaction

American Journal of Audiology ◽

10.1044/2018_aja-18-0130 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

pp. 274-284 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Elizabeth Convery ◽

Gitte Keidser ◽

Louise Hickson ◽

Carly Meyer

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Hearing Loss ◽

Hearing Aids ◽

Clinical Decision Making ◽

Hearing Aid ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Report ◽

Self Management ◽

Hearing Aid Benefit ◽

The Relationship

Purpose Hearing loss self-management refers to the knowledge and skills people use to manage the effects of hearing loss on all aspects of their daily lives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-reported hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Method Thirty-seven adults with hearing loss, all of whom were current users of bilateral hearing aids, participated in this observational study. The participants completed self-report inventories probing their hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between individual domains of hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Results Participants who reported better self-management of the effects of their hearing loss on their emotional well-being and social participation were more likely to report less aided listening difficulty in noisy and reverberant environments and greater satisfaction with the effect of their hearing aids on their self-image. Participants who reported better self-management in the areas of adhering to treatment, participating in shared decision making, accessing services and resources, attending appointments, and monitoring for changes in their hearing and functional status were more likely to report greater satisfaction with the sound quality and performance of their hearing aids. Conclusion Study findings highlight the potential for using information about a patient's hearing loss self-management in different domains as part of clinical decision making and management planning.

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