Hearing Loss Can Cause Dementia

Yeni Yüzyıl University Gaziosmanpaşa Hospital, Department of Ear Nose and Throat, Assoc. Dr. Aldülkadir Özgür made statements on the subject of 'Hearing loss is the cause of dementia'.

Hearing, one of the five basic senses we have; It is a very important part of our daily life, socially, socially and physically. Hearing function is of great importance in order to continue our life in a healthy way. Hearing loss, which is caused by age and social factors, can be an important problem that affects the place and status of the person in the society. Untreated hearing loss can pave the way for diseases such as dementia, which are common in the elderly today.

Yeni Yüzyıl University Gaziosmanpaşa Hospital, Department of Ear Nose and Throat, Assoc. Dr. Aldülkadir Özgür made statements on the subject of 'Hearing loss is the cause of dementia'.

Untreated hearing loss causes social isolation

Hearing is a person's ability to make sense of sound, which is an important communication tool. Depending on age, the person gradually loses this ability. While 10% of the society in the fifties need support for hearing, this rate rises to 70-50% in the 60's. If these people with hearing loss are not supported for hearing with hearing aids or other supportive devices, they gradually begin to isolate themselves from the society. Because making an effort to understand what the other party is saying during the day is tiring. At the end of this tiring situation, the person reduces his communication with his environment and becomes withdrawn. Then, diseases such as depression and dementia occur that isolate the person from the society and reduce the need for care. Studies conducted in recent years show that there is a risk of dementia up to 70% in people with hearing loss if this hearing loss is not corrected with support.

Hearing loss is among the preventable risk factors for dementia.

Dementia is caused by damage to brain cells and can occur due to different diseases. When brain cells do not communicate normally, it affects thinking, behavior and mood. Hearing loss is one of these reasons. Preventing dementia cannot be prevented by eliminating hearing loss alone. However, hearing loss is among the preventable risk factors of dementia, and we can easily say that a healthy hearing significantly reduces the risk of dementia.

One of the important points in hearing loss is the early use of hearing aids after diagnosis.

In age-related hearing loss, there is usually a weakening of the neural steps of hearing. Our most important treatment option in these patients is hearing aids. We can use in-ear or behind-the-ear devices by evaluating the degree of hearing loss and the patient's preference. Our preference is always to use hearing aids in both ears. This is because bilateral hearing provides a better understanding of the depth of the sound. In addition, bilateral hearing enables us to perceive sound better, especially in crowded environments where hearing is difficult. Another important point is to use the hearing aid from the early stage of hearing loss. The longer the hearing loss lasts, the weaker the hearing nerve becomes. For this reason, if we can restore hearing with a hearing aid in the early period, the nerve remains healthier.