Health status attributes of older African-American adults with hearing loss

This article describes a study that examined hearing loss and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) attributes of 71 African-American older adults ranging in age from 60 to 89 years. Demographic profiles were used to obtain pertinent case histories, audiometric testing was used to obtain estimates of peripheral hearing sensitivity, and middle-ear integrity was assessed via tympanometry. The health status (i.e., HRQoL) attributes were determined via self-report scores on the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). Results from bivariate analyses determined statistically significant correlations between hearing loss and lower SF-36 scores across subscales. Multivariate regression models revealed a statistically significant impact between hearing loss and lower SF-36 scores across subscales, even after controlling for experimental confounds. These findings suggest that hearing loss is capable of contributing to HRQoL deficits in African-American older adults. The importance of these data in terms of pre-existing attitudes of African-American older adults towards hearing healthcare services and long-term effects of untreated hearing loss are considered.