Forty years on: a new national study of hearing in England and implications for global hearing health policy

Tsimpida, Dialechti ORCID: 0000-0002-3709-5651, Panagioti, Maria and Kontopantelis, Evangelos (2023) Forty years on: a new national study of hearing in England and implications for global hearing health policy. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AUDIOLOGY, 62 (1). pp. 62-70.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14992027.2021.2022791

Abstract

<h4>Objective</h4>We aimed to update the prevalence estimates of hearing loss in older adults in England using a nationally representative sample of adults aged 50 years old and older.<h4>Design</h4>A comparative cross-sectional study design was implemented. Hearing loss was defined as ≥35 dB HL at 3.0 kHz, as measured via Hearcheck in the better-hearing ear.<h4>Study sample</h4>We compared the estimates based on the English census in 2015 to estimates from psychoacoustic hearing data available for 8,263 participants in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) Wave 7 (2014-2015).<h4>Results</h4>Marked regional variability in hearing loss prevalence was revealed among participants with similar age profiles. The regional differences in hearing outcomes reached up to 13.53% in those belonging to the 71-80 years old group; the prevalence of hearing loss was 49.22% in the North East of England (95%CI 48.0-50.4), versus 35.69% in the South East (95%CI 34.8-36.50).<h4>Conclusion</h4>A socio-spatial approach in planning sustainable models of hearing care based on the actual populations' needs and not on age demographics might offer a viable opportunity for healthier lives. Regular assessment of the extent and causality of the population's different audiological needs within the country is strongly supported.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Demographics, ELSA, epidemiology, health geography, hearing health inequalities
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Population Health
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	31 Jan 2023 08:26
Last Modified:	31 Jan 2023 08:26
DOI:	10.1080/14992027.2021.2022791
Open Access URL:	https://doi.org/10.1080/14992027.2021.2022791
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3167976