Aging
Impact of Hearing Interventions on Dementia Risk and Cognitive Decline in Older Adults with Hearing Loss Rhea Dcunha* Rhea Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Dcunha Department of Epidemiology, Boston University School of Public Health
Background: Hearing loss affects over 430 million people globally and is associated with dementia, but it is unclear whether hearing loss interventions are associated with dementia incidence.
Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized and non-randomized controlled trials, cohort studies, and pre-post single arm studies evaluating the impact of hearing loss interventions on cognitive outcomes in adults aged ≥ 45 years with confirmed hearing loss. Studies among individuals with prevalent cognitive impairment, dementia, psychiatric disorders, HIV/AIDS, Down syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, or non-dementia related conditions were excluded. Interventions included hearing aids, cochlear implants, and aural rehabilitation, compared with usual care or no intervention. The outcome was incident dementia. We searched MEDLINE and PsycInfo from inception through July 2025. Two reviewers independently screened studies. Results were pooled using random-effects meta-analysis, and publication bias was assessed via Egger’s regression.
Results: Four studies reporting incident dementia (N = 212,627) were included. Studies were conducted in the US, South Korea, and multinational cohorts, with follow-up ranging from 3-12 years. All 4 studies were observational cohorts that used propensity score matching or multivariable adjustments to control for confounding. The pooled risk ratio was 0.77 (95% CI: 0.64–0.92), indicating receiving hearing interventions was associated with a 23% lower dementia risk (Figure 1). Substantial heterogeneity was observed (I² = 86.3%). No evidence of publication bias was detected (p = 0.61).
Conclusions: Our findings suggest treating hearing loss may be an important approach toward reducing the incidence of dementia. However, all included studies were observational, and residual confounding by health-seeking behavior and socioeconomic factors cannot be ruled out.
