The association of food intake on the development of hearing impairment after middle age among Japanese community dwellers.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine whether food intake modifies the risk of developing hearing impairment (HI) in Japanese adults in their 40s. METHODS: Data for individuals who were in their 40s with no HI at baseline and had participated in the survey multiple times were extracted from the National Institute for Longevity Sciences, Longitudinal Study of Aging. A total of 1846 samples observed for up to 11.5 years in 421 participants were included in the analyses. The average 3-day food intake was calculated. HI is defined as a pure-tone average of the better ear at frequencies of 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz greater than 25 dB. The risk of developing HI in the 18 food groups was calculated longitudinally using multivariable cumulative data analyses. RESULTS: Even after adjusting basic confounding factors, food groups, and baseline hearing level, significant associations were found between beverage consumption and risk increments for HI (odds ratio [OR] = 2.374, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.141-4.940) and also between mushroom intake and risk reduction (OR = 0.215, 95% CI:0.069-0.667). Other foods did not consistently show significant results when the combination of analysis variables were changed. CONCLUSIONS: Although the effect of food on hearing is modest to the extent that the significance varies with the variables used in the analysis, the intake of beverages and mushrooms could potentially modify the risk of developing HI after middle age.

A Multi-Institutional Study of Older Hearing Aids Beginners-A Prospective Single-Arm Observation on Executive Function and Social Interaction.

OBJECTIVES: To obtain new insights into research questions on how executive function and social interaction would be observed to change after the introduction of hearing aids (HAs) in older people with hearing impairment. DESIGN: Multi-institutional prospective single-arm observational study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Outpatients with complaints of hearing difficulty who visited HA clinics between October 18, 2017, and June 30, 2019, in 7 different university hospitals in Japan. METHODS: The inclusion criteria of the study named Hearing-Aid Introduction for Hearing-Impaired Seniors to Realize a Productive Aging Society-A Study Focusing on Executive Function and Social Activities Study (HA-ProA study) were age ≥60 years and no history of HA use. A series of multi-institution common evaluations including audiometric measurements, the digit symbol substitution test to assess executive functions, convoy model as an index of social relations, and hearing handicap inventory for the elderly (HHIE) were performed before (pre-HA) and after 6 months of the HA introduction (post-HA). RESULTS: Out of 127 enrollments, 94 participants completed a 6-month follow-up, with a mean age of 76.9 years. The digit symbol substitution test score improved significantly from 44.7 at baseline to 46.1 at 6 months (P = .0106). In the convoy model, the social network size indicated by the number of persons in each and whole circles were not significantly different between pre- and post-HA; however, the total count for kin was significantly increased (P = .0344). In the analyses of HHIE, the items regarding the family and relatives showed significant improvement. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: HA use could benefit older individuals beginning to use HAs in executive function and social interaction, though the results should be interpreted cautiously given methodological limitations such as a single-arm short 6 months observation. Reduction in daily hearing impairment would have a favorable effect on relationships with the family.

Hearing-impaired elderly people have smaller social networks: A population-based aging study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Hearing impairment (HI) is a major global health concern. In addition, social networks are important for healthy aging. This study aimed to examine the association between HI and social relationships. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This study was conducted by the National Institute for Longevity Sciences as part of its Longitudinal Study of Aging with 1176 Japanese participants aged 60 years or older (mean age 71.0 ± 7.4). The convoy model was used to evaluate participants' network size. A pure-tone average hearing level (HL) of 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz in the better ear >25 dB HL was defined as HI. Multivariate analysis was performed to assess the relationship between HI and the network size, adjusting for age, gender, years of education, presence of depressive symptoms, and higher-level functional capacity score. RESULTS: The mean network sizes across the three circles of the convoy model differed significantly by HI status (18.7 ± 0.4 in the no-HI group vs 17.0 ± 0.5 in the HI group, p = 0.003). In particular, the number of non-kin in the outer circle was significantly less in the HI group (4.1 ± 0.2 vs 3.3 ± 0.3, p = 0.004). DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: The social network size was significantly smaller in the HI group. The outer circle of people to whom the individual feels less close and the number of non-kin were related to the presence of HI. Therefore, HI may be associated with elderly people's social relationships.

Efficacy of the red blood cell distribution width for predicting the prognosis of Bell palsy: a pilot study.

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between RDW values and the prognosis of patients with Bell palsy in an effort to find a prognostic biomarker that predicts recovery from Bell palsy. We measured RDW and evaluated facial movement in 61 patients with Bell palsy aged 50 years and less. All patients were treated with a steroid plus an antiviral agent. Seven patients underwent surgery for facial nerve decompression. During the post-treatment period, patients with a Yanagihara grading score of 36 or more were regarded as having a satisfactory recovery. Patients were divided into two groups (recovered and unrecovered) according to their response to treatment, and several parameters, including the RDW, were measured for further analysis. RDW values were significantly higher in the unrecovered group than in the recovered group (13.5 ± 1.7 vs. 12.7 ± 0.7%, p = 0.046). In the multiple logistic regression model, RDW was the only factor associated with recovery from Bell palsy (odds ratio 1.93, 95% confidence interval 1.02-4.65, p = 0.042). Our preliminary study provides the first evidence that the red cell distribution width (RDW) can predict recovery from Bell palsy in patients aged 50 years and less. Further studies are necessary to elucidate the potential pathophysiological mechanisms for our findings.