Hearing loss affects a large proportion of adults over the age of 70 – up to 60% in the US, and things are not much different in other countries. Previous studies have shown that hearing loss is linked to an increased risk of dementia. The reason for this association, however, is not fully understood.
In a new study, researchers sought to understand the association between hearing loss and increased risk of dementia.
A team of researchers from the University of California San Diego and the Kaiser Permanente Washington Institute for Health Research used hearing tests and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine whether hearing loss is associated with differences in specific regions of the BRAIN.
In a report published by Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease it is specified that the people enrolled in this study who had hearing impairments showed microstructural differences in the auditory areas of the temporal lobe and in the areas of the frontal cortex involved in speech and language processing, as well as in areas involved in executive function.
These results suggest that hearing loss may lead to changes in areas of the brain related to processing sounds, as well as areas of the brain that are related to attention, they also report in a university press release.
Interventions that help reduce the cognitive effort required to understand speech — such as using subtitles on TV and movies, hearing aids, and accessing quiet environments instead of noisy spaces — could be important for protecting the brain and reducing risk, experts say. of dementia.
2023-11-26 22:06:00
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