Effects of auditory interventions in adults with hearing loss and age-related cognitive decline.

• Grant number: 23/10031-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2023
• End date: October 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Speech Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Ana Cláudia Mirândola Barbosa Reis
• Grantee: Maria Júlia Rangel e Castro
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This is an observational, cross-sectional study from a larger study called "Effects of auditory interventions in adults with hearing loss and age-related cognitive decline". It aims to investigate whether there is auditory effort in speech perception activity in older adults with hearing loss and cognitive decline related to aging. Casuistry composed of 60 elderly people, of both sexes, diagnosed with mild cognitive disorder, mild or moderate dementia with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss ranging from mild to moderate (GE1) and without hearing loss (GE2) and the control group (GC). All will be submitted to three phases of data collection: a) initial evaluation composed of the following procedures: anamnesis, behavioral audiological evaluation; b) evaluation of auditory effort in speech perception activities and; c) application of questionnaires. For data analysis, statistical tests will be performed to compare the groups, with a statistical significance level of 5%.It is expected with this study to identify, in this population segment, the main difficulties in decoding phonemic aspects and if it varies the dispensation of cognitive resources when in acoustic signal recognition activities, especially speech, called auditory effort. The initial hypothesis is that there are differences between auditory test results that may be indicative of the onset of degenerative neurological diseases related to advancing age. From the diagnosis, promote an appropriate intervention to minimize the deleterious effects on the quality of life of these individuals.