[Associations between central auditory processing function and attentional function in age-related hearing loss]

Objective: To investigate the relationships between peripheral auditory function, central auditory processing, and attentional function in individuals with age-related hearing loss (ARHL), thereby providing scientific evidence for the clinical assessment and intervention of ARHL. Methods: A total of 32 individuals with ARHL who were recruited from Peking Union Medical College Hospital between September 2020 and March 2024 were enrolled, including 12 males and 20 females, aged 60-73 years (mean age: 66.1 years). Additionally, 32 age-matched individuals with normal hearing were recruited as the control group, including 14 males and 18 females, aged 60-70 years (mean age: 65.4 years). Peripheral auditory function was assessed using pure-tone audiometry (PTA). Central auditory processing was evaluated using the speech-in-noise (SIN) test and the gaps-in-noise (GIN) test. Attentional function was assessed with the digit vigilance test (DVT). Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 27.0 software. Results: Compared with the control group, individuals with ARHL exhibited significantly prolonged DVT reaction time (RT), indicating poorer performance on the attention task [ARHL group: (210.2±43.1) s; control group: (189.3±37.3) s; t=2.068, P=0.043]. In the ARHL group, SIN threshold was significantly positively correlated with DVT RT (pr=0.502, P=0.005). Among all participants, both SIN and GIN thresholds were significantly positively correlated with DVT RT (SIN: pr=0.691, P<0.001; GIN: pr=0.349, P=0.006), whereas the PTA threshold showed only a marginal correlation with DVT RT (pr=0.229, P=0.075). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the SIN threshold was the only auditory measure independently associated with DVT RT (β=9.673, 95%CI: 3.611-15.734, P=0.002). Conclusions: Individuals with ARHL demonstrate prolonged RT on attention-related tasks, suggesting a potential decline in attentional processing speed. The association between central auditory processing ability and attentional processing speed is substantially stronger than that between peripheral auditory function and attentional processing speed. These findings suggest that central auditory processing function may have potential value in the investigation and assessment of cognitive function in older adults.