Adults who use hearing aids to treat hearing loss can reduce their risk of death by a large percentage, according to a new study.
Earlier this week, researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) published their findings in the journal The Lancet Healthy Longevity.
“We found that there was a 24% lower risk of mortality for people who use hearing aids,” said Dr. Janet Choi, assistant professor of clinical otolaryngology – head and neck surgery at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, and an otolaryngologist at USC Keck Medicine. said in a statement to CNN.
The study looked at data from 10,000 people, including more than 1,800 people with self-identified hearing loss. Of these, a small group reported using the devices at least once a week, compared to a larger number of individuals who reported never using such devices.
After studying death rates between 1999 and 2012, researchers found that there was no difference between people who occasionally used hearing aids and those who never used them. However, the study found that users who regularly wear hearing aids have a significantly lower risk of death.
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A woman with a hearing aid.
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Hearing loss, according to the Mayo Clinic, affects more than half of people in the United States over the age of 75.
Factors leading to hearing loss can include damage to the inner ear and earwax build-up during work hours, the medical organization adds.
Currently, about 30 million people age 12 and older in the United States have hearing loss in both ears, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Communication Disorders.
The organization adds that more than 28 million adults nationwide could benefit from using hearing aids. Additionally, among adults age 70 and older with hearing loss who could benefit from it, less than 30% have ever used it.
Similarly, approximately 16% of adults aged 20 to 69 who could benefit have ever used hearing aids.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education