title: The effect of hearing augmentation on cognitive assessment scales at admission to hospital.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  : The aim was to assess how the use of a commercially available hearing augmentation device affected performance on cognitive assessment scales on admission to hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  : This was a randomized controlled trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  : The study was conducted on all of the acute assessment wards in a department of medicine for the elderly.
  
  
  METHODS
  : All patients admitted to the department from December 1, 2007, until February 28, 2008, were considered for admission to the study. Patients with delirium were excluded.
  
  
  METHODS
  : A commercially available device provided hearing augmentation in the intervention group on the second day.
  
  
  METHODS
  : All participants had cognitive assessments using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Abbreviated Mental Test (AMT) on two consecutive days.
  
  
  RESULTS
  : A total of 192 patients (60.4% women, mean [±SD] age 82.4 [±7.0] years) were recruited and randomized into control (N = 58) or intervention groups (N = 134). Paired and unpaired t-tests were used to compare mean improvements in scores within and between groups, respectively. The mean improvement in MMSE scores was 2.00 (p <0.001) in the intervention group and 0.49 in the control group (p = 0.46), and the mean improvement in AMT scores was 0.48 (p <0.001) for the intervention group and 0.24 (p = 0.04) for the control group. In comparing mean improvements between groups, unpaired t-test results were significant for MMSE (p <0.001) but not for AMT (p = 0.23). These results were confirmed on repeated-measures ANOVA (group by time interaction).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  : Hearing augmentation significantly improves performance on MMSE scores. The use of hearing augmentation devices in routine screening for cognitive impairment merits further study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine for the Elderly, Woodend Hospital, NHS Grampian, Aberdeen. Allan.MacDonald@nhs.net
authors.forename: Allan A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: MacDonald
authors.forename: Anu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Joyson
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: David G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Seymour
authors.forename: Roy L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Soiza
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006310:Hearing Aids / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010343:Patient Admission