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The impact of age-related hearing loss on the neuroanatomical network for language: a meta-analysis
Poster A65 in Poster Session A, Thursday, October 6, 10:15 am - 12:00 pm EDT, Millennium Hall
Kate Slade1, Johannes Reilly1, Christopher Plack1,2, Lawrence Hayes3, El Smith1, Kamila Jablonska1, Helen Nuttall1; 1Lancaster University, 2University of Manchester, 3University of the West of Scotland
This meta-analysis investigated the association between age-related hearing loss and structural neuroanatomy, specifically changes to grey matter volume across language and speech areas. Hearing loss is associated with increased risk of dementia, a neurodegenerative disease which significantly affects language. Hence, understanding the effects of hearing loss in older age on brain health across language areas is essential. We reviewed studies which compared older participants with hearing loss (HL) to older adults without clinical hearing loss (NH), on neuroanatomical outcomes, specifically grey matter volume as measured by magnetic resonance imaging. A total of five studies met the inclusion criteria, three of which were included in an analysis of whole-brain grey matter volume (HL-group n = 113; NH-group n = 138), and three were included in analyses of lobe wise grey matter volume (HL-group n = 139; NH-group n = 162). Effect-size seed-based d mapping software was employed for whole-brain and lobe-wise analysis of grey matter volume. The analysis indicated there was no significant difference between older adults with HL compared to those with no age-related HL in whole-brain grey matter volume. Due to lacking stereotactic coordinates, the atrophy of grey matter in specific neural locations could only be conducted at lobe-level. These data indicate that older adults with HL show increased grey matter atrophy in the temporal lobe only (not in occipital, parietal, or frontal), compared to older adults without HL. Overall, the findings endorse regular auditory testing for ≥60-year-olds, as HL co-occurred with atrophy in grey matter across temporal regions. Managing age-related HL, e.g., through hearing aids, may reduce the adverse functional effects of grey matter atrophy in the areas associated with speech and language production and processing. This meta-analysis was pre-registered on PROSPERO (CRD42021265375).
Topic Areas: Prosody, Writing and Spelling