Author: Samantha Terhaar, Dhruv Patel, Ethan Fung, Febronia Mansour, Josh F. Wallace, Martin Corsten, James Ted McDonald, Stephanie Johnson-Obaseki, Alexandra E. Quimby
Year: 2024
Category:
Health Publications
Many older adults experience hearing loss, but not everyone who could benefit from hearing assistance devices uses them.
This study used data from a large U.S. national health survey collected between 2017 and early 2020. Researchers focused on adults aged 70 years and older who had completed hearing tests. They estimated how common hearing loss and hearing assistance device use were and examined how these outcomes differed across select social and demographic characteristics.
The study found that about three-quarters of older adults had hearing loss. Among those with non-profound hearing loss, about one-third used a hearing assistance device. Differences were observed by age, education, race and ethnicity, sex, and insurance status, showing that hearing loss and use of hearing supports are not evenly distributed across the population.
