Self-Reported Hearing Status Is Associated with Lower Limb Physical Performance, Perceived Mobility, and Activities of Daily Living in Older Community-Dwelling Men and Women

Objectives: To explore the associations between self-reported hearing problems and physical performance and self-reported difficulties in mobility and activities of daily living (ADLs) in community-dwelling older adults.

Design: Cross-sectional cohort study.

Setting: Community.

Participants: Men and women aged 75 to 90 (N = 848).

Measurements: Structured face-to-face interviews to assess perceived hearing problems in the presence of noise, mobility difficulties (moving indoors, stair-climbing, 0.5-km walk, 2-km walk), and difficulties in ADLs and instrumental ADLs. The Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) was administered. Age; years of education; cognitive functioning; and self-reported cardiac, circulatory, and locomotor diseases were used as covariates.

Results: Persons who reported major hearing problems had a lower SPPB total score than those who reported good hearing (mean 9.8 vs 10.9, P = .009), indicating poorer performance, and more difficulties in ADLs (mean 1.8 vs 1.4, P = .002) and IADLs (mean 4.6 vs 3.4, P = .002), after controlling for covariates. They were also more likely to have more difficulty in stair-climbing (odds ratio (OR) = 2.8, P < .001) and walking 2 km (OR = 2.1, P = .003) and tended to have more difficulty in walking 0.5 km (OR = 1.7, P = .05) but not moving indoors (P = .18). Persons who reported only some hearing problems did not differ from those who reported good hearing in any of the variables studied.

Conclusion: Perceived major hearing problems in older adults may contribute to poorer lower limb performance and difficulties in mobility and ADLs. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine whether poor hearing is a risk factor for decline in physical performance.