Hearing aids appear to improve balance in older adults with hearing loss, say researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. According to their study, published in the October 2014 online issue of The Laryngoscope, the research team found that patients with hearing aids in both ears performed better on standard balance tests when their hearing aids were turned on, as compared with when they were off.

The study was relatively small, but demonstrated that sound information, separate from the balance system of the inner ear, contributes to maintaining the body’s stability. The study lends support to the idea that improving hearing through hearing aids or cochlear implants may help reduce the risk of falls in older adults.

“We don’t think it’s just that wearing hearing aids makes the person more alert,” said senior author Timothy E. Hullar, MD, professor of otolaryngology at the School of Medicine. “The participants appeared to be using the sound information coming through their hearing aids as auditory reference points or landmarks to help maintain balance. It’s a bit like using your eyes to tell where you are in space. If we turn out the lights, people sway a little bit—more than they would if they could see. This study suggests that opening your ears also gives you information about balance.”

In one test, subjects’ eyes were covered as they stood with their feet together on a thick foam pad. In a second, more difficult task, patients stood on the floor with one foot in front of the other, heel to toe, also with no visual cues for balance. Those having more difficulty with balance in these tests performed better when their hearing aids were on. Hullar concludes that the research team intends to undertake a much larger study, and is actively seeking funding to do so.

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