Health: Hearing aids can delay depression in people with hearing problems for up to five YEARS

The onset of depression in people with hearing problems can delay up to five years through the use of hearing aids, a study has suggested.

Researchers from Northern Ireland studied 2,114 patients with hearing problems, each of whom had more than 50, from the National Alzheimer’s Coordination Center.

The team found that a third of participants who used hearing aids did not develop depression five years after their debilitating mental disorder, or ‘MCI’.

In comparison, this figure was only one-fifth of those who did not use hearing aids.

MCI, which manifests itself as problems with memory and thinking that does not significantly interfere with daily life, affects some 5-20% of people over 65 years of age.

It is not defined as a form of dementia. However, individuals diagnosed with MCI are more likely to go on to develop depression later in life.

The experts said their findings were an ‘important first step’ in supporting a move to encourage people with hearing loss who are at risk of dementia to use hearing aids.

‘We measured the time to transition from MCI to depression in individuals using hearing aids and those with uncorrected hearing problems,’ said paper author and data analyst Magda Bucholc from the University of Ulster in Ireland who North.

The team said, ‘she said the use of hearing aids associated with a two-year turnover was slower into depression.’

‘The percentage of participants who did not develop dementia five years after the MCI baseline diagnosis was 19 per cent for those who did not use hearing aids and 33 per cent for those who did not use hearing aids . ‘

‘Some might say this is a relatively small decision,’ she said.

‘However, in my view – in the absence of disease modification treatment for depression – even a small beneficial effect of hearing loss treatment in delaying the disease can have a significant impact on public health. ‘

‘Indeed, studies show that even two years’ delay in dementia would have a major economic and social impact,’ Dr Bucholc continued.

The findings, she said, are a key first step in driving policy changes to encourage people with hearing loss who are at risk of dementia to use hearing aids. ‘

According to the researchers, their study is the first to examine the link between hearing aids and progression to depression in individuals with MCI.

‘Our results clearly show that the use of independently connected hearing aids has a lower risk for dementia diagnosis for MCI patients,’ said the paper’s author, Dr Sarah Bauermeister, of Dementias Platform UK-based in Oxford.

‘Hearing loss has been strongly proven to be associated with an increased risk for depression,’ said Ralph Holme, director of research research at the Royal National Institute for the Deaf (RNID).

“This new research supports the growing perception that the use of hearing aids can help get you started,” he said.

More research is needed to conclusively reveal this, but clearly taking early action to address your hearing loss can only be a good thing. ‘

‘RNID is helping to fund a vital study to understand why hearing loss is linked to depression.’

The full findings of the study were published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research and Clinical Interventions.