title: Ear and hearing status in a multilevel retirement facility.
abstract: The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate ear and hearing status in a retirement facility. Two measures of earwax occlusion, hearing impairment, hearing handicap, and cognitive function were made for 49 residents across a 1- to 4-month interval. Forty-nine percent of these residents had excessive or impacted earwax at time measurement #1 and 30.6% at time measurement #2. Because the other measures showed minimal change, time 1 and 2 measures were averaged, resulting in an incidence of 79.3% for moderate or greater hearing impairment, 39.0% for cognitive deficit, 12.5% for significant self-reported hearing handicap, and 17.2% for significant staff-reported handicap. A higher incidence of excessive and impacted earwax, moderate or greater hearing impairment, and cognitive deficit was found for residents in assisted living and nursing care than for residents in independent living. Recommendations for hearing impairment and handicap screening and effective communication strategies are offered.
authors.affiliation: East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: Deborah S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Culbertson
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Griggs
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hudson
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002571:Cerumen; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012720:Severity of Illness Index