Journal of Audiology & Otology

The Korean Audiology Society (대한청각학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Approaching Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Model for Elderly with Dementia Who are Suspected to Have Hearing Impairment in Korea

  • You, Sunghwa (Laboratory of Hearing and Technology, College of Natural Sciences, Hallym University) ;
  • Han, Woojae (Laboratory of Hearing and Technology, College of Natural Sciences, Hallym University)
  • Received : 2019.03.17
  • Accepted : 2019.04.16
  • Published : 2020.01.20
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

Because the psychophysical symptoms of hearing loss and dementia in the elderly are very similar, untrained healthcare professionals in dementia facilities can easily overlook a severity of hearing loss in their patients. The present study identifies their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) on hearing loss using a survey whether they may help hearing problem of the patients with dementia. A total of 29 health-care professionals responded to the KAP survey. Also, 2 family members participated. The results showed that most of the nurses and caregivers in elderly medical welfare facilities who worked with dementia patients did not have knowledge of their hearing loss. Even the facility managers did not know how to conduct hearing tests for their patients although they did recognize that some of their patients had a hearing loss. Eventually, actual practice was not possible at this moment by the professionals. However, our respondents did have a positive attitude toward screening for hearing loss and help their patients with dementia wear hearing aids if a clinical guideline was provided. We suggest to develop clear and precise clinical guidelines of the hearing screening test for the dementia patients due to the interrelationship between dementia and hearing loss. When these guidelines apply to elderly residents in a medical welfare facility, early diagnosis and treatment of their sensory loss will help alleviate their dementia as well.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The authors sincerely thank Prof. Piers Dawes, University of Manchester to permit the translation of the K-KAP questionnaire. We also thank Prof. Jin-A Chun, Hallym University to assist collecting our pilot data from the facilities. This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2018S1A3A2074932).

References

  1. Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS). Population projections and summary indicators (Korea): 2015-2065 [Internet]. Daejeon: KOSIS; 2018 [cited 2018 Dec 8]. Available from: URL: http://kosis.kr/statHtml/statHtml.do?orgId=101&tblId=DT_1BPA002&conn_path=I2&language=en.
  2. World Health Organization (WHO). Dementia cases set to triple by 2050 but still largely ignored [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; 2012 [cited 2019 Jan 9]. Available from: URL: https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2012/dementia_20120411/en/.
  3. Gurgel RK, Ward PD, Schwartz S, Norton MC, Foster NL, Tschanz JT. Relationship of hearing loss and dementia: a prospective, population-based study. Otol Neurotol 2014;35:775-81. https://doi.org/10.1097/MAO.0000000000000313
  4. Lin FR. Hearing loss and cognition among older adults in the United States. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2011;66:1131-6. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glr115
  5. Lin FR, Metter EJ, O'Brien RJ, Resnick SM, Zonderman AB, Ferrucci L. Hearing loss and incident dementia. Arch Neurol 2011;68:214-20. https://doi.org/10.1001/archneurol.2010.362
  6. Lin MY, Gutierrez PR, Stone KL, Yaffe K, Ensrud KE, Fink HA, et al. Vision impairment and combined vision and hearing impairment predict cognitive and functional decline in older women. J Am Geriatr Soc 2004;52:1996-2002. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2004.52554.x
  7. Ong SY, Cheung CY, Li X, Lamoureux EL, Ikram MK, Ding J, et al. Visual impairment, age-related eye diseases, and cognitive function: the Singapore Malay Eye study. Arch Ophthalmol 2012;130:895-900. https://doi.org/10.1001/archophthalmol.2012.152
  8. Reyes-Ortiz CA, Kuo YF, DiNuzzo AR, Ray LA, Raji MA, Markides KS. Near vision impairment predicts cognitive decline: data from the Hispanic Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly. J Am Geriatr Soc 2005;53:681-6. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2005.53219.x
  9. Thomson RS, Auduong P, Miller AT, Gurgel RK. Hearing loss as a risk factor for dementia: a systematic review. Laryngoscope Investig Otolaryngol 2017;2:69-79. https://doi.org/10.1002/lio2.65
  10. Uhlmann RF, Larson EB, Koepsell TD, Rees TS, Duckert LG. Visual impairment and cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease. J Gen Intern Med 1991;6:126-32. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02598307
  11. Horowitz A. The prevalence and consequences of vision impairment in later life. Top Geriatr Rehabil 2004;20:185-95. https://doi.org/10.1097/00013614-200407000-00006
  12. Strawbridge WJ, Wallhagen MI, Shema SJ, Kaplan GA. Negative consequences of hearing impairment in old age: a longitudinal analysis. Gerontologist 2000;40:320-6. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/40.3.320
  13. Schopper D, Doussantousse S, Orav J. Sexual behaviors relevant to HIV transmission in a rural African population. How much can a KAP survey tell us? Soc Sci Med 1993;37:401-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(93)90270-E
  14. Chien-Yun D, Wan-Fei C, Yu-Hsi Y, Chia-Hung Y. A study on modification of knowledge, attitude and practice on vocational high school electronics courses integrated with nanotechnology concept. Int J of Thermal & Environmental Engineering 2012;4:73-9. https://doi.org/10.5383/ijtee.04.01.011
  15. Pye A, Charalambous AP, Lerio I, Thodi C, Dawes P. Screening tools for the identification of dementia for adults with age-related acquired hearing or vision impairment: a scoping review. Int Psychogeriatr 2017;29:1771-84. https://doi.org/10.1017/s104161021700120x