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The Relationship Between Nonverbal Cognitive Functions and Hearing Loss

Jan Berend Deijen
VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

S. Theo Goverts
Sophia E. Kramer
VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Contact author: Adriana A. Zekveld, Department of Audiology, P.O. Box 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, The Netherlands. E-mail: aa.zekveld{at}vumc.nl.

Purpose: This study investigated the relationship between hearing loss and memory and attention when nonverbal, visually presented cognitive tests are used.

Method: Hearing loss (pure-tone audiometry) and IQ were measured in 30 participants with mild to severe hearing loss. Participants performed cognitive tests of pattern recognition memory, sustained visual attention, and spatial working memory. All cognitive tests were selected from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB expedio; Cambridge Cognition Ltd., 2002). Regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between hearing loss and these cognitive measures of memory and attention when controlling for age and IQ.

Results: The data indicate that hearing loss was not associated with decreased performance on the memory and attention tests. In contrast, participants with more severe hearing loss made more use of an efficient strategy during performance on the spatial working memory subtest. This result might reflect the more extensive use of working memory in daily life to compensate for the loss of speech information.

Conclusions: The authors conclude that the use of nonverbal tests is essential when testing cognitive functions of individuals with hearing loss.

KEY WORDS: cognitive functions and disorders, hearing loss, memory, attention

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				A. A. Zekveld, E. L. J. George, S. E. Kramer, S. T. Goverts, and T. Houtgast The Development of the Text Reception Threshold Test: A Visual Analogue of the Speech Reception Threshold Test J Speech Lang Hear Res, June 1, 2007; 50(3): 576 - 584. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]