Hearing Impairment as a Risk Factor for Dementia in Older Adults

Dementia Clinical Trial

Official title: Modifiable Risk Factors and Dementia - A Study Examining the Association Between Hearing Impairment in Mid-life and Cognitive Impairment in the HUNT4 70+ Study

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

This Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) project is part of a larger project on potentially modifiable risk factors for dementia in a life course perspective, with an overarching aim to improve prevention of dementia and thereby potentially relieve patient and caregiver distress and decrease societal load. The present PhD project will concentrate on confirming knowledge of HI as an independent risk factor for dementia and exploring potentially causative factors to explain this relationship.

Clinical Trial Description

Despite a huge increase in the knowledge about disease mechanisms in various types of dementia in recent years, no curative treatment exists at present. Results from research on disease-modifying agents have been disappointing. This has led to an increased interest in other ways to reduce the prevalence of dementia. A recent report estimated that up to one third of dementia cases could be delayed or prevented by interventions directed at the most common risk factors. In the "Lancet commission on dementia prevention, treatment, and care", hearing impairment (HI) was identified as the potentially most important modifiable risk factor. Even though HI is considered an important modifiable risk factor, the evidence regarding the association between HI and dementia risk is still limited. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Deafness
• Dementia
• Hearing Loss

• NCT number: NCT04284384
• Study type: Observational
• Source: Norwegian Centre for Ageing and Health
• Status: Completed
• Start date: August 19, 2019
• Completion date: November 20, 2020