Relationship Between Domain-Specific Cognitive Function and Speech-in-Noise Performance in Older Adults: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Hearing Pilot Study.

AGE distribution; AUDIOMETRY; SPEECH audiometry; CARDIOVASCULAR diseases risk factors; CHI-squared test; COGNITIVE testing; CONFIDENCE intervals; STATISTICAL correlation; DEAFNESS; MENTAL depression; DIABETES; HEARING aids; HEARING impaired; HEARING levels; HYPERTENSION; LANGUAGE & languages; NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL tests; NOISE; PSYCHOACOUSTICS; PSYCHOLOGICAL tests; REHABILITATION; SELF-evaluation; SMOKING; INTELLIGIBILITY of speech; PILOT projects; MULTIPLE regression analysis; EDUCATIONAL attainment; INDEPENDENT living; CROSS-sectional method; EXECUTIVE function; STATISTICAL models; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; KRUSKAL-Wallis Test; OLD age

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between performance on a clinical speech-in-noise measure with a comprehensive neurocognitive battery of tests. Method: A group of older adults (N = 250, Mage = 77 years, age range: 67.3-89.1 years) enrolled in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive Study took part in the hearing pilot study (2013) that included testing for audiometric thresholds and speech-in-noise performance (Quick Speech-in-Noise Test; Killion, Niquette, Gudmundsen, Revit, & Banerjee, 2004). This research study analyzed the associations between domain-specific cognitive function and speech-in-noise performance after adjusting for hearing thresholds and other demographic and cardiovascular factors. Results: Multivariable-adjusted associations were found between all cognitive domains and speech-in-noise performance in the full sample, but the observed associations varied when participants with varying levels of moderate to moderately severe hearing loss were excluded from the analysis. Conclusions: The findings are discussed in terms considering the cognitive status of older adults in relation to their speech-in-noise performance during audiological evaluation and implications for aural rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]