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Age-related hearing impairment-a risk factor and frailty marker for dementia and AD
Panza F, Solfrizzi V, Logroscino G.. Nature reviews. Neurology, 2015-02-17
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Age-related hearing impairment (ARHI, also known as presbycusis) is potentially a reversible risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer disease (AD). Social isolation, loneliness, poor verbal communication, and cognitive reserve depletion might causally link ARHI with cognitive impairment. ARHI is an important frailty marker, and several factors related to physical frailty could be associated with cognitive impairment. Such factors include inflammatory markers and vascular factors, which might also directly contribute to ARHI. Randomized controlled trials of potential interventions, and larger population-based studies, could facilitate further understanding of the interplay between cognitive impairment, ARHI and frailty in older age. Deficits in both peripheral hearing and central auditory processing (CAP) can contribute to ARHI. Impairments in peripheral hearing and CAP have been linked to accelerated cognitive decline, incident cognitive impairment and AD; moreover, CAP dysfunction is common in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD. Assessment of CAP dysfunction in people with ARHI might, therefore, aid identification of older individuals with increased risk of MCI and AD.
Key findings
- ARHI is an important frailty marker, and several factors related to physical frailty could be associated with cognitive impairment.
- Assessment of CAP dysfunction in people with ARHI might, therefore, aid identification of older individuals with increased risk of MCI and AD.
Why it matters
This review describes age-related hearing impairment as a potentially reversible risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer's disease, possibly linked through social isolation, loneliness and cognitive reserve depletion. It suggests that assessing central auditory processing might help identify older people at increased risk, but no intervention is tested here.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 48/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Nature reviews. Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Nature Reviews Neurology: journal h-index 269 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2015 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 256 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 19.7 citations a year over 13 year(s) since 2015 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 11 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 51 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Giancarlo Logroscino: h-index 126 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | University of Bari Aldo Moro: institution h-index 586 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 25686757) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 48 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Panza, F., Solfrizzi, V., & Logroscino, G. (2015). Age-related hearing impairment-a risk factor and frailty marker for dementia and AD. Nature reviews. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2015.12
Vancouver
Panza F, Solfrizzi V, Logroscino G. Age-related hearing impairment-a risk factor and frailty marker for dementia and AD. Nature reviews. Neurology. 2015. doi:10.1038/nrneurol.2015.12. PMID: 25686757.
BibTeX
@article{panza2015-25686757,
author = {Panza, F. and Solfrizzi, V. and Logroscino, G.},
title = {{Age-related hearing impairment-a risk factor and frailty marker for dementia and AD}},
journal = {Nature reviews. Neurology},
year = {2015},
doi = {10.1038/nrneurol.2015.12},
pmid = {25686757},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2015.12}
}
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