Hearing Loss can be Confused with Dementia
Digital Hearing Aids can Improve Mental Function and Understanding
Sep 22, 2009
As we age, the senses can gradually deteriorate. An elderly parent or grandparent may seem increasingly confused, forgetful or difficult. The family is concerned that that dementia is setting in. A hearing test may reveal significant hearing loss. The brain relies on information from the senses of sight and hearing. Poor or partial information leads to confusion which gives the impression of deteriorating brain function.
Warning signs of Hearing Loss
With todays high sound levels in entertainment, hearing loss is likely to start by late middle age. Some warning signs are:
- difficulty picking out a conversation against background noise
- can hear speech but not understand what is being said
- higher pitched voices of women and children are hard to follow
- high pitched phones, doorbells not heard
- need radio or TV louder than other family members
Why Speech Becomes Hard to Follow
Speech is made up of a mixture of high, medium and low pitched sounds. Consonants like "s" have high sounds, vowels like "a" generally have lower sounds. Hearing loss typically affects the high pitched, or high frequency sounds. Unfortunately it is the consonants that give words their shape and identity. As hearing deteriorates,
- it becomes tiring following a lecture or a conversation
- it is harder to understand films and TV as bits of dialog get lost
- people appear to be "mumbling" because vowels but not consonants are heard.
How Hearing Loss can Mimic Dementia
As the loss progresses, frequent misunderstandings with friends or family members are likely. The person affected may develop a habit of saying "yes" or nodding their head, to cover up the fact that they don't know what has been said. This gives the appearance of forgetfulness or of an elderly person being difficult and changing their mind arbitrarily.
What Can Be Done
A hearing test will show if there is a problem. The medical professional does an audiometric assessment using equipment which produces sound at different pitches.
- each ear is tested separately
- hearing is tested at several different pitches
- using headphones, a sound is fed to the ear under test
- the sound starts quiet and gets louder
- the person being tested pushes a button when they hear the sound
The results display as a graph on a computer showing a how each ear is functioning at different pitches. Based on this a hearing aid may be recommended.
Digital Aids can Help Mental Functioning
Modern digital hearing aids are adjusted by computer to compensate for the individual pattern of hearing loss that has showed up in the hearing test. The results can be quite dramatic, especially if uncorrected hearing loss has been present for years. Suddenly a normal conversation with friends or family is possible.
It takes time to get used to hearing aids. The brain has to re-learn to use the input from the ears. It is worth the effort. Understanding and relationships improve. Arrangements for work or leisure are easier to make. More complex ideas can be discussed, showing mental function is better than it appeared when hearing loss was uncorrected.
Hearing aids can be expensive if they are not provided on your country's medical insurance scheme, but they can make a great improvement to the mental functioning and relationships of a person suffering from hearing loss.
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