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Every row of the evidence table
One row per finding: what was tested, which way the result went, and how the study was built. The answer by area, and where the studies disagree, are on the main page.
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Showing 8 of 382 rows. One row per study per exposure: a study that tested two different things appears twice, once for each.
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| Exposure | Question | Direction | Outcome measured | Design | People | Effect size, as the source reported it | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hearing loss / hearing aids Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Benefit
whyConfined to people who said the aid actually improved their hearing (HR 0.86); those reporting poor improvement showed nothing (HR 0.98). |
Probable dementia over a mean 6.5 years | cohort study | 61,089 | HR 0.91 (95% CI 0.88-0.94) for hearing aid use; HR 0.86 (0.80-0.93) with effective use |
Cell Reports Medicine
2026 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 42127901 |
| Hearing loss / hearing aids Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Harm
whyDirection is for having the impairment. Dual sensory impairment carried the highest risk (HR 1.63 for all-cause dementia, 2.55 for Alzheimer's). |
All-cause and cause-specific dementia | meta-analysis | 937,908 | Hearing impairment: pooled HR 1.30 (95% CI 1.21-1.40); dual sensory impairment HR 1.63 (1.14-2.12) for all-cause dementia |
BMC Medicine
2024 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 39506811 |
| Hearing loss / hearing aids Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Harm
whyDirection is for hearing loss. Risk was lower among those using hearing aids (aHR 1.06) than those not (aHR 1.20). The authors note their estimates are smaller than earlier studies'. |
Incident dementia over a mean 8.6 years | cohort study | 573,088 | Hearing loss without hearing aids aHR 1.20 (95% CI 1.13-1.27); with hearing aids aHR 1.06 (1.01-1.10) |
JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
2024 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 38175662 |
| Hearing loss / hearing aids Hearing and vision | Prevention |
No effect
whyNull in the primary analysis of the whole cohort. The prespecified analysis of the higher-risk ARIC subgroup found less decline, which the authors present as hypothesis-generating rather than as a result. |
3-year global cognition (primary analysis) | randomised trial | 977 | Primary analysis: "3-year cognitive change (in SD units) was not significantly different between HI and SA control (HI: -0.200 [95% CI: -0.256, 0.144]; SA: -0.202 [95% CI: -0.258, -0.145]; Difference 0.002 [95% CI: -0.077, 0.081], p=0.96)." ARIC subgroup: "HI was associated with a 48% reduction in 3-year cognitive change compared to SA control (Difference 0.191 [95% CI: 0.022, 0.360], p=0.027)." |
The Lancet
2023 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 37478886 |
| Hearing loss / hearing aids Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Benefit
whyMostly observational (25 of 31 studies), so people who take up hearing aids may differ from those who do not. The authors call for randomised trials — and ACHIEVE, the trial that followed, was null overall. |
Long-term cognitive decline | meta-analysis | 137,484 | HR 0.81 (95% CI 0.76-0.87) for cognitive decline with hearing aid use |
JAMA Neurology
2023 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 36469314 |
| Vision impairment / cataract surgery Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Benefit
whyAgainst untreated cataract. People who had surgery ended up at about the same risk as controls who never had cataracts (HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.66-1.06), and there was no short-term gain in those already cognitively impaired. |
Long-term cognitive decline / dementia | meta-analysis | 558,276 | HR 0.75 (95% CI 0.72-0.78) for cognitive decline with surgery |
Ophthalmology
2024 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 38336283 |
| Vision impairment / cataract surgery Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Harm
whyDirection is for having a vision impairment. Single vision impairment raised all-cause dementia risk but not Alzheimer's specifically; having both hearing and vision impairment carried the highest risk. |
All-cause and cause-specific dementia | meta-analysis | 937,908 | UK Biobank cohort: vision impairment and all-cause dementia HR 1.55 (95% CI 1.18-2.04) and non-Alzheimer non-vascular dementia HR 1.51 (1.07-2.13). Meta-analysis of 31 cohorts: single vision impairment and all-cause dementia HR 1.43 (95% CI 1.16-1.71), not significant for Alzheimer's. Mendelian randomisation: vision impairment and non-AD non-VD OR 1.62 (95% CI 1.13-2.33). Dual sensory impairment: all-cause dementia HR 1.63 (1.14-2.12) |
BMC Medicine
2024 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 39506811 |
| Vision impairment / cataract surgery Hearing and vision | Prevention |
Harm
whyDirection is for having cataracts or myopia. A Mendelian randomisation analysis supported the cataract-vascular dementia link. |
Incident dementia and brain volume | cohort study | 304,953 | Cataracts HR 1.18 (95% CI 1.07-1.29) for dementia; MR OR 1.92 (1.26-2.92) for vascular dementia |
JAMA Network Open
2024 ✓ Peer-reviewed PMID 39078629 |