ABSTRACT
Purpose
To analyze the linguistic and cognitive performance, the presence of reports of changes in hearing, the complaint and the auditory self-perception of elderly people who attend a Brazilian community center, and to verify the relationship between these variables.
Methods
Demographic data of 61 subjects were analyzed; the presence of reports of changes in hearing in the last five years and hearing complaints; linguistic performance through the Montreal-Toulouse Battery; the results of the cognitive screening test through the Mini-Mental State Examination; and auditory self-perception by the short version of the self-assessment questionnaire on auditory participation restriction for the elderly.
Results
The mean age was 71 years and schooling was six years. The scores of the tests applied indicated the presence of cognitive decline and alteration in some language task, especially in the narrative speech. With regard to reports about the auditory condition, 38 elderly people reported hearing change in the last five years. There was a statistically significant association between the presence of hearing changes and complaints and changes in cognitive screening and verbal fluency tests. The scores of the self-perception of auditory participation restriction test were associated with the scores of the repetition linguistic subtest.
Conclusion
The elderly in a Brazilian community center showed a high prevalence of hearing changes in the last five years and hearing complaints related to aging, which were associated with linguistic-cognitive performance, which highlights the relevance of longitudinal monitoring of the communicative and cognitive performance of the elderly
Keywords:
Aged; Cognition; Language; Hearing; Communication