Early treatment of hearing loss may delay dementia

Treatment of hearing loss can play a crucial role in delaying the development of dementia among the elderly, according to a new US study.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University have followed almost 3,000 older adults over an eight -year period and have now concluded that almost a third of all dementia strikes them with diagnosed hearing loss.

It writes Daily Mail.

Researchers’ results published in the journal Jama Otolaryngology show that even mild hearing loss can increase the risk of dementia.

The researchers found a dementia occurrence of 16.2 percent in people with mild hearing loss and 16.6 percent in those with moderate to serious hearing loss. In addition, they have been able to see that the risk was slightly higher in women, where the risk is 30.8 percent, while in men it is 24 percent.

The majority of cases arose in people over 75 years.

The experts behind the study are now calling on health authorities to prioritize hearing tests for the elderly and emphasize the potential of public health that targets hearing loss as a way of preventing dementia.

As part of a larger strategy of reducing dementia risk, experts have made recommendations such as better access to hearing aids, reducing harmful noise exposure and early treatment of high cholesterol in people over 40 years.

Dementia, and especially Alzheimer’s disease, hits millions globally, while in Denmark there are 96,000 people living with a dementia disease, of which about 50,000 have Alzheimer’s disease.