PERCEIVED EMOTIONAL AND SITUATIONAL HEARING HANDICAP IN THE ELDERLY AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS

Aim: The study aimed to identify perceived emotional and situational hearing handicap in the elderly and their family members. Design: A cross-sectional study. Methods: The sample comprised 256 respondents (128 hearing-impaired elderly patients and 128 family members). Data were collected in an audiology office over a period of four months. To measure their quality of life, the full version of the standardized HHIE questionnaire was used in elderly patients with hearing loss and the modified HHIE-SP instrument in their family members. Results: The study results suggest that elderly patients’ hearing loss affects the quality of life of not only the patients themselves but also of their family members. When comparing the two subgroups, the impact of hearing loss on their quality of life was identical. The elderly noticed major problems when communicating in a noisy environment while in family members, hearing loss had the greatest impact when listening to TV or radio. Both subgroups had the least problems when attending religious services. Elderly patients’ quality of life was considerably correlated with the severity of their hearing loss. Conclusion: In old age, hearing loss is one of the most common sensory impairments, thus becoming an important social and health problem. In the elderly, hearing loss may impair the exchange of information and therefore significantly affect their everyday life, causing loneliness, isolation, dependency, frustration as well as communication disorders. Keywords: elderly, family member, hearing handicap