Over 18 million people in the UK are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus – that’s one in three people. That number includes: over half the population aged 55 or more who have hearing loss, rising to almost 80% of people over the age of 70 the British Deaf Association estimates that there are over 150,000 people in the UK who use British Sign Language (BSL), of whom 87,000 are deaf 1 in 7 adults have tinnitus – in...
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Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No actionable clinical change; these age-stratified prevalence figures are reference data useful for awareness and service planning, not a new clinical finding.
Age-stratified prevalence data reinforces the scale of unmet hearing need in older UK adults, underpinning the case for proactive screening and service investment.
- 01Over 18 million people in the UK are affected by deafness or hearing loss.
- 02More than 50% of people aged 55+ have hearing loss.
- 03Nearly 80% of people over 70 are affected by hearing loss.
- 04Data compiled by RNID to illustrate the lived experience of deaf and hard-of-hearing people in the UK.
- 05Figures highlight a strong age gradient, pointing to significant demand from an ageing population.
Hearing loss rates exceed 50% in those aged 55 and over in the UK.
studysupportedNearly 80% of people over 70 in the UK have hearing loss.
studysupported