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Hearing Loss Intervention

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In today’s time, there is a need for new prevention, assessment, and intervention strategies for adults experiencing hearing loss accompanied by, or at-risk for, dementia (Pichora-Fuller, 2015). Research has found that individuals with hearing loss are at risk for developing dementia, and dementia is also more prevalent in individuals with dementia. Patients with dementia are recognized at different stages, and the Pichora-Fuller questions the possibility of earlier and better health care slowing the progression of, or even completely deterring, dementia. Often, those with high cognitive abilities are involved in social activities, some type of physical activities, may be a musician, or possess good cognitive skills, such as being bilingual. However, individuals that experience poor hearing often are hindered when it comes to participating in such activities, which is thought to be one significant link between dementia and hearing loss. When assessing the connection between hearing loss and cognitive impairment, two main …show more content…

The most common form of hearing rehabilitation is hearing aids. The issue arises when the oldest old adults do not have access to hearing aids, which could be due to financial issues or because they are unable to go to an audiologist’s clinic or office. Future research is needed in the areas of prevention, assessment, and intervention. A greatly structured research project is needed for determining how to prevent or slow dementia. For assessment, establishing multi-disciplinary teams willing to share their knowledge of cognition and hearing is critical. More research is needed for intervention to determine the burden that is placed on a caregiver, as well as how intervention could assist caregivers faced with taking care of an oldest old patient with a hearing loss and dementia.
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