Deafness and dementia

Losing your hearing could increase your risk of developing dementia. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore studied more than 600 men and women over an average of 12 years and all the participants had a hearing test done at the start of the study. Overall 9% of the participants developed dementia over the course of the study. Those with mild hearing loss had twice the risk of developing dementia, while those with moderate hearing loss had three times the risk. People with severe hearing loss had five times the risk of developing dementia.

Deaf people, seclusion and restraint

It is widely believed that people who are deaf or who have hearing problems are more often subject to restraint and seclusion in mental-health services than other people but there is little hard evidence to back this up. Researchers from Oregon State Hospital and Pacific University in Oregon compared 22 deaf or hard of hearing people committed to a large state hospital with 22 similar people who had also been committed but who did not have hearing problems. They found that the people with hearing problems were more likely to be subject to seclusion and restraint although the people with good hearing were, on average, secluded for longer.

Hartman, Brian and Blalock, Ann - Comparison of Seclusion and Restraint Prevalence between Hearing Patients and Deaf or Hard of Hearing Patients in a State Hospital Setting Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 32: 42–45, 2011