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Hearing health matters more than you think
When we change the conversation from hearing loss as a sensory problem to hearing care as part of healthy living, we can better help patients to connect socially and thrive mentally and emotionally. Phonak supports the holistic benefits of hearing care, with particular focus on supporting responsible conversations around understanding the link between cognitive health and providing tools to care for our overall well-being.
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Cognition news
Results of the ENHANCE study after 3 years of hearing aid use
New results compared the cognitive performance of a group of new hearing aid users and a group of non-users over 3 years at 18-month intervals.
The Social Cure: Improving the health and well-being of your patients
Why including family in hearing healthcare can help your clients benefit from the “social cure.”’
Bringing the topic of hearing loss and cognition into clinical practice
Sonia Cuero, Au.D., shares three tips for educating clients about the link between hearing loss and cognition.
Achieving optimal outcomes: Insights from the ACHIEVE Study audiologists on treating hearing loss in older adults
Explore key findings from the ACHIEVE Study and learn practical strategies to support your clients in their journey toward better hearing health.
New guideline supports your clients’ cognitive health
Experts in cognition and hearing contributed to an evidence-based guideline that promotes hearing and cognitive health in audiologic rehabilitation.
ECHHO program
Hearing care professionals are intimately familiar with the challenges clients face with hearing loss. However, the potential impact of untreated hearing loss extends beyond communication difficulties, reaching into the realm of cognitive health. The Enhancing Cognitive Health with Hearing Optimization (ECHHO) program aims to equip hearing care professionals with resources to better integrate the topic of cognitive health and social engagement into their discussions with clients.
Program highlights
Auditory processing & cognitive changes
Understanding the impact of normal aging on auditory processing and cognitive change
Programing hearing aids for older adults
Best Practice recommendations to the unique needs of older adult as a result of changes in auditory processing and cognition
Phonak technologies to support healthy aging
5 key Phonak technologies to reduce listening effort and fatigue and support social engagement and cognitive health
Improve your client outcomes, differentiate your service offering and grow your business with ECHHO.
Contact your local Phonak representative to learn more.
Expertly fit hearing aids:
- Provide more access to sound which supports auditory processing¹
- Improve listening abilities and communication²
- Have beneficial effects on cognition³⁻⁸
- Could mitigate the risk of cognitive decline and dementia⁶⁻⁸
Evidence
Phonak supports research and innovation in hearing healthcare. We are committed to driving evidence in the field of holistic hearing care and healthy aging.
Two recent studies, ACHIEVE (Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders) and ENHANCE (Evaluation of Hearing Aids and Cognitive Effects) incorporate longitudinal observations, best practice audiological management, randomized control hearing interventions, and comprehensive cognitive assessments to provide more insight into the relationship between hearing loss and cognition.
Both studies were supported by Sonova’s research program and an in-kind donation of Phonak hearing aids.
ACHIEVE study
The purpose of the ACHIEVE study is to determine whether best-practices hearing intervention and/or successful aging health education can slow the trajectory or prevent cognitive decline in older adults.
This study is a multi-center randomized control trial. The 977 participants were randomized to receive either hearing intervention or a healthy aging education program.
The ACHIEVE study is led by Co-Principal Investigators Frank Lin, MD, PhD and Josef Coresh, MD, PhD from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Highlights
ENHANCE study
In the ENHANCE study, 160 participants who received hearing intervention, including hearing aid fitting, were followed up for 3 years and their performance on a computerized battery of cognitive tests was compared to 102 participants of the Australian Imaging Biomarker & Lifestyle Study of Ageing (AIBL) who did not receive hearing intervention.
The ENHANCE study is led by Principal Investigator Professor Julia Sarant, PhD from the University of Melbourne.
Highlights
New
Promoting hearing and cognitive health in audiologic rehabilitation for the well-being of older adults.
Sarant, J. et al. 2023
Hearing intervention versus health education control to reduce cognitive decline in older adults with hearing loss in the USA (ACHIEVE): a multicentre, randomised controlled trial.
Lin, F., et al. (2023, July 17)
Cognition news & research
The landscape of research is constantly evolving, with an increasing number of studies shedding light on the connection between hearing loss and cognition. Explore the latest insights:
Looking for cognition tools for your office?
Resources
Cognition podcast
The research landscape is constantly evolving, with more studies shedding light on the connection between hearing loss, social engagement and cognition. Listen to “The Audiologist” to stay up to date.
Footnotes
1. Picou, E. M., Ricketts, T. A., & Hornsby, B. W. (2013). How hearing aids, background noise, and visual cues influence objective listening effort. Ear and Hearing, 34(5), e52–e64.
2. Ferguson, M. A., Kitterick, P. T., Chong, L. Y., Edmondson-Jones, M., Barker, F., & Hoare, D. J. (2017). Hearing aids for mild to moderate hearing loss in adults. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 9(9), CD012023.
3. Maharani, A., et al. (2018). Longitudinal relationship between hearing aid use and cognitive function in older Americans. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 66(6), 1130–1136.
4. Sarant, J., et al. (2020). The effect of hearing aid use on cognition in older adults: Can we delay decline or even improve cognitive function?. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 9(1), 254.
5. Sanders, M. E., Kant, E., Smit, A. L., & Stegeman, I. (2021). The effect of hearing aids on cognitive function: A systematic review. PLoS One, 16(12), e0261207.
6. Mahmoudi, E., et al. (2019). Can hearing aids delay time to diagnosis of dementia, depression, or falls in older adults? Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 67(11), 2362-2369.
7. Sarant, J., et al. (2023, July 16-20). Cognitive function in older adults with hearing loss: Outcomes for treated vs untreated groups at 3-year follow-up [Conference presentation]. AAIC 2023 Conference, Amsterdam, NL.
8. Lin, F.R., Pike, J.R., Albert, M.S., et al. (2023). Hearing intervention versus health education control to reduce cognitive decline in older adults with hearing loss in the USA (ACHIEVE): a multicentre, randomised controlled trial.