Cognitive change in prevalent and incident hearing loss: The Maastricht Aging Study

Abstract INTRODUCTION Hearing loss (HL) has been associated with cognitive decline and dementia. We examined the temporal association between prevalent and incident HL and cognitive change. METHODS A total of 1823 participants (24‐82 years) from the Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS) were assessed at baseline, 6 and 12 years, including pure‐tone audiometry. Linear‐mixed models were used to test the association between HL and cognition, adjusted for demographics and other dementia risk factors. RESULTS Participants with prevalent and incident HL showed a faster decline in verbal memory, information processing speed, and executive function than participants without HL. Decline was steady from baseline to 6 and 12 years for prevalent HL, but time‐delayed from 6 to 12 years for incident HL. Having a hearing aid did not change associations. DISCUSSION Findings support the notion that HL is a risk factor for cognitive decline independent of other dementia risk factors. Onset of HL preceded onset of cognitive decline. Highlights We examined cognitive change in prevalent and incident hearing loss. Prevalent and incident hearing loss were associated with faster cognitive decline. For prevalent hearing loss, decline was steady from baseline to 6 and 12 years. Onset of hearing loss preceded the onset of cognitive decline. Having a hearing aid did not change the observed associations.