Physical and mental health in Chinese seniors is affected by hearing loss
For middle-aged and older adults, Chinese hearing loss and its severity are closely related to several physical and mental health issues, a study finds.
The study found that in the “China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study”, 1,248 participants (8.36%) suffered from hearing loss at the baseline and that those with hearing loss were more likely to have chronic diseases, impaired activities of daily living (ADLs), impaired instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) as well as depressive symptoms.
For the 376 participants with hearing loss in the “Hearing Survey 2019”, 30.3%, 38.3% and 31.4% of them had moderate, severe and profound hearing loss respectively. As the severity of hearing loss increased, the participants were more likely to have impaired activities of daily living, impaired instrumental activities of daily living and depressive symptoms.
Study data
The study obtained data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2011, 2013 and 2015, in which hearing loss was measured by asking whether participants aged 45 years and older had hearing problems. From the survey “Hearing Survey 2019”, a survey conducted in Shandong Province of China, including 376 middle-aged and older participants, the severity of hearing loss in the survey was identified by pure tone average of hearing thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz.
The study, "The association of hearing impairment and its severity with physical and mental health among Chinese middle-aged and older adults”, was published in the journal Health and Quality of Life Outcomes.
Sources: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov and the journal Health and Quality of Life Outcomes