How great is the negative impact of masking and social distancing and how can we enhance communication skills in the elderly people?
Aging Clin Exp Res
; 33(5): 1157-1161, 2021 May.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1135211
ABSTRACT
During COVID-19 pandemic, protective measures such as social distancing and face masks posed a challenge in daily communication, in this context the elderly are one of the most at risk categories as widely exposed to hearing loss. This article focuses on how the COVID-19 pandemic affected verbal communication, especially on those people that even in normal conditions present an increased difficulty in speech perception. Special attention has been paid to hearing aids and cochlear implant users, these devices indeed can be affected by a speech intelligibility reduction and could be uncomfortable if used together with face masks. Possible alternatives and solutions will be proposed to reduce the negative impacts of face coverings on communication, to enhance speech intelligibility and to manage wearability of hearing rehabilitation devices.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Speech Perception
/
Cochlear Implants
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Aging Clin Exp Res
Journal subject:
Geriatrics
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S40520-021-01830-1
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