Presbycusis, part 1: can you hear the music of life?
| Autor: | Janet C. Bogus, Eleanor K. Covan, Barbara Hutchison |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2012 |
| Předmět: |
Hearing aid
Male medicine.medical_specialty Hearing loss medicine.medical_treatment Presbycusis Pilot Projects Audiology Social support Quality of life (healthcare) Hearing Aids Surveys and Questionnaires Adaptation Psychological otorhinolaryngologic diseases medicine Dementia Humans Cognitive decline Aged 80 and over Health Policy medicine.disease Population Surveillance Auditory Perception Caregiver stress Female medicine.symptom Psychology |
| Zdroj: | Care management journals : Journal of case management ; The journal of long term home health care. 13(3) |
| ISSN: | 1521-0987 |
| Popis: | We used a novel approach allowing participants in this study to self-monitor their hearing sensitivity to familiar sounds in the environment. The objective of this approach was to establish whether participants in the 80-89 and 90-99 age groups would recognize the degree of their hearing impairment. It was our hope that participants would value audiology treatment and that it would improve their quality of life over a short period. The pilot study took place in a clinical environment where participants answered survey questions before and after audiology treatment, which pertained to their hearing impairment, morale, social support, and life satisfaction. Caregivers were included in the research to rate and record participants' problem behaviors (e.g., shouting, anger, agitation, repetitive speech dialog, and depression) before, during, and after treatment. This research validates other scientists' findings that annoying problem behaviors may actually be the result of hearing loss because of a person's inability to recognize speech. The pilot study shows that participants with mild dementia adapted well to speech and sounds in the natural environment without agitation as well as to management of hearing aids within a 30-day period. The participants with moderate dementia were slower to adapt. All participants with dementia required the cooperation of their caregivers to maintain hygiene of ear canals and hearing aids and insertion. This study suggests that the sooner people receive treatment for hearing loss, the quicker they are to recognize speech and to master hearing aid technology. Keywords: environmental sounds; music; hearing loss; hearing aids; chronic diseases; dementia Prior to studying gerontology, the student researcher spent many academic years in auditory training to analyze rhythm patterns and the spectrum of sound tones for composing and performing classical music correctly. The music of life is the union of rhythms, melodies, and harmonies in the environment that cultures have reproduced musically since recorded history. Psychologists, neurologists, and music therapists value the importance of people hearing rhythms because pulsed sound improves movement and balance to prevent falling. These professionals also value people hearing melodies and harmonies because sound tones stimulate brain activity and, thus, guards against emotional stress, depression, isolation, cognitive decline, and a weak immune system. Although countless individuals rely on amplified sound to gauge their hearing status, we believe that speech and sounds in the natural environment are safer for gauging hearing loss. When the middle and inner ear ages or is damaged, the brain cannot detect softspeech and high sound tones (e.g., whispered words, rustling leaves, and songbirds); this is an indication of early hearing loss. Audiology treatment is important because it benefits people physiologically, emotionally, psychologically, and socially, so they can better meet behaviorally the demands of living. Many older adults struggle from day-to-day with both hearing impairment and dementia because of untreated hearing loss. Both are chronic illnesses that threaten human health, autonomy, and long life. Prompt treatment, however, can prevent disease or lessen symptoms. If more people knew of the mental and physical consequences of untreated hearing loss, they might either prevent damage to their hearing or correct the impairment with hearing technology or surgery soon after noticing the loss of perceived sound. Unfortunately, many people believe that hearing loss, such as dementia, is the result of normal aging. Neither of these beliefs is true. We examined and validated compelling research from multiple scientific specialties with the hope of adding to the base of knowledge. We discovered a universal problem of recurring social and economic influences: (a) hearing loss; (b) chronic diseases and dementia; (c) shortages of medical providers; (d) exclusionary rules of health care; (e) cultural values, beliefs, and behaviors; and (f ) caregiver stress to older adults with dementia and with hearing impairment. … |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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