Cognition and Brain Activation in Elderly Adults Who Do or Do Not Have Age Related Hearing Loss

Funded by the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Research Center at Utah State University.

The primary aim of this study is to compare behavioral and brain differences between elderly adults who do or do not have age related hearing loss.

There are two groups of participants:

1. Adults over the age of 55 who do not have a hearing loss
2. Adults over the age of 55 who have a hearing loss and have worn hearing aids for at least 6 months.

Participants complete speech perception and auditory working memory tasks while we measure their brain activation using functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy. The overarching research hypothesis is that the level of brain activation and the neural connectivity patterns across temporal, inferior parietal, inferior frontal, and dorsolateral pre-frontal cortical brain areas will differ for the auditory processing of speech in noise and working memory tasks. We also hypothesize that neural activation patters will differ for individuals who do and do not wear hearing aids.

Because ARHL is highly prevalent, uncommonly treated, and recognized as one of the major risk factors for dementia, this project is of high public health significance and has a strong potential for guiding future research and practice in this area. We need to understand the behavioral and neuro-cognitive benefits of hearing aid use by experienced users without dementia to better understand the hearing aid benefits for individuals with dementia.