Effect of Recognition of Hearing Loss Among Care Recipients on Caregiver Reported Care Outcomes

Hearing loss (HL) is common in older adults, but many do not recognize how it affects communication. This lack of recognition may limit caregivers' ability to provide effective support, since communication is central to caregiving. This study examined whether care recipients' HL recognition is associated with caregiver burden and psychosocial well-being.

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Audiologists and geriatric care teams should consider screening for self-awareness of hearing loss in older patients, since lack of recognition is linked to worse caregiver-reported outcomes — though this study alone does not define a new screening protocol.

Hearing loss that goes unrecognized by patients can silently worsen caregiver burden and care quality, making hearing awareness a meaningful target for geriatric care interventions beyond the clinic.

1. 01Care recipients' failure to recognize their own hearing loss is associated with worse caregiver-reported outcomes.
2. 02Communication barriers between care recipient and caregiver are a key mechanism identified.
3. 03Study population focuses on older adults, where unrecognized hearing loss is common.
4. 04Published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, a high-impact geriatrics journal.
5. 05Findings highlight hearing loss identification as relevant to caregiver well-being, not just the patient.

PMID

42861992

DOI

10.1111/jgs.70756.

Journal

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Publication type

research_article

Evidence level

2b

Population

Older adults with hearing loss and their caregivers

Intervention

Care recipient self-recognition of hearing loss

Comparator

Care recipients who do not self-recognize hearing loss