Hearing problems reduce the quality of life of older people

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-06/aof-hpr060616.php

Public Release: 6-Jun-2016
Hearing problems reduce the quality of life of older people
Academy of Finland

Research has found that hearing loss has wide-ranging impacts not only on older people's ability to communicate, but also on their ability to move about and participate in different hobbies and activities. This has been revealed in studies funded by the Academy of Finland whose results have been published in international scientific journals.

"In our recent studies, we've observed that older people with hearing problems have a more limited life space, and that these problems lower their quality of life," says Doctoral Student Hannele Polku.

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According to the results, people who experienced hearing problems in different everyday situations moved less within their life space than those who considered their hearing to be good. During the two-year monitoring period, the people who were hard of hearing were twice as likely as others to limit their life space only to nearby areas. The life space of those with good hearing, on the other hand, remained more often unlimited.

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"According to our study, audiometrically measured hearing alone is not a sufficient measure of how people experience their hearing problems and how these affect their everyday lives. For example, a person with many everyday social contacts and communication with others may feel that even a minor hearing loss may affect their everyday functioning. On the other hand, a person more inclined to enjoy domestic tasks carried out on one's own doesn't experience the same number of problems due to a change of a similar degree in hearing," says Polku.

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