Cognitive Tests and Acceptance of Noise in Older Adults With Normal Hearing

PURPOSE: Cognitive decline may affect how older listeners tolerate noise. Our purpose was to determine which cognitive variables are associated with older adults' acceptance of background noise, as measured by the acceptable noise level (ANL). METHOD: Fifteen adults with hearing within normal limits, aged 50-72 years, were administered the following tests: the ANL, the digit span and letter-number sequencing subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition, the auditory attention subtest from the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities, the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT), and the operation span test. We then compared data from the older adults with an earlier data set obtained from younger adults with normal hearing, aged 20-29 years. RESULTS: Older adults had significantly larger ANL values (were less tolerant of noise) than younger adults, and older adults scored significantly lower on auditory attention than the younger adults. There was no significant relation between scores on the HINT test and the ANL scores. CONCLUSIONS: Older adults' reduced attention control may make them less tolerant of noise than younger adults. Older adults who are not yet hearing aid candidates may still be more adversely affected by noise and may benefit from auditory rehabilitation-related tools to address noise.