The effect of age on the hearing-related quality of life in normal-hearing adults

Katrien Kestens; Hannah Keppler; Dorien Ceuleers; Stephanie Lecointre; Flore De Langhe; Sofie Degeest

doi:10.1016/j.jcomdis.2023.106386

The effect of age on the hearing-related quality of life in normal-hearing adults

J Commun Disord. 2023 Nov-Dec:106:106386. doi: 10.1016/j.jcomdis.2023.106386. Epub 2023 Oct 27.

Authors

Katrien Kestens¹, Hannah Keppler², Dorien Ceuleers³, Stephanie Lecointre⁴, Flore De Langhe⁴, Sofie Degeest⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Corneel Heymanslaan 10 (2P1), 9000 Ghent, Belgium. Electronic address: Katrien.Kestens@UGent.be.
² Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Corneel Heymanslaan 10 (2P1), 9000 Ghent, Belgium; Department of Oto-rhino-laryngology, Ghent University Hospital, Corneel Heymanslaan 10 (2P1), 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
³ Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Corneel Heymanslaan 10 (2P1), 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
⁴ Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Corneel Heymanslaan 10 (2P1), 9000 Ghent, Belgium.

PMID: 37918084
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcomdis.2023.106386

Abstract

Introduction: Recently, a new holistic Patient Reported Outcome Measure (PROM) to assess hearing-related quality of life was developed, named the hearing-related quality of life questionnaire for Auditory-VIsual, COgnitive and Psychosocial functioning (hAVICOP). The purpose of the current study was to evaluate if the hAVICOP is sufficiently sensitive to detect an age effect in the hearing-related quality of life.

Methods: One-hundred thirteen normal-hearing participants (mean age: 42.13; range: 19 to 69 years) filled in the entire hAVICOP questionnaire online through the Research Electronic Data Capture surface. The hAVICOP consists of 27 statements, across three major subdomains (auditory-visual, cognitive, and psychosocial functioning), which have to be rated on a visual analogue scale ranging from 0 (rarely to never) to 100 (almost always). Mean scores were calculated for each subdomain separately as well as combined within a total score; the worse one's hearing-related quality of life, the lower the score. Linear regression models were run to predict the hAVICOP total as well as the three subdomain scores from age and sex.

Results: A significant main effect of age was observed for the total hAVICOP and all three subdomain scores, indicating a decrease in hearing-related quality of life with increasing age. For none of the analyses, a significant sex effect was found.

Conclusion: The hAVICOP is sufficiently sensitive to detect an age effect in the hearing-related quality of life within a large group of normal-hearing adults, emphasizing its clinical utility. This age effect on the hearing-related quality of life might be related to the interplay of age-related changes in the bottom-up and top-down processes involved during speech processing.

Keywords: Aging; Hearing; Quality of Life; Questionnaire.

MeSH terms

Adult
Hearing
Hearing Loss* / psychology
Hearing Tests
Humans
Quality of Life
Speech Perception*
Surveys and Questionnaires