The association among visual, hearing and dual sensory loss with depression and anxiety over six years: The Tromsø Study

• Published in: International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
• Main Authors: Cosh, Suzanne, von Hanno, Therese, Helmer, Catherine, Bertelsen, Geir, Delcourt, Cécile, Schirmer, Henrik
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: ResearchInstitutes_Networks_Beacons/global_development_institute; Global Development Institute; Tromsø
• Online Access: https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/publications/1ad9cebf-4382-4462-95dd-cb184df72b2a; https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.4827; https://pure.manchester.ac.uk/ws/files/62219566/Tromso_Sensory_impairment_and_mental_health_R1.docx

Objective: To examine the longitudinal association of dual and single (vision, hearing) sensory loss on symptoms of depression and anxiety in older adults. Methods: 2890 adults aged 60 years or over who participated in the longitudinal population-based Tromsø Study, Norway, were included. The impact of objective vision loss, self-report hearing loss, or dual sensory loss on symptoms of depression and anxiety, as assessed by the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-10, was examined at baseline and six year follow-up using linear mixed models. Results: Hearing loss had a cross sectional relationship with increased depression (b = 0.1750, SE = 0.07, p = .02) and anxiety symptoms (b = 0.1765, SE = 0.08, p =.03), however, these relationships were not significant at six-year follow up. Both vision loss only and dual sensory loss predicted increased depression scores at follow up (b = 0.0220, SE = 0.01, p =.03; b =0.0413, SE = 0.02, p = .01, respectively). Adjustment for social isolation did not attenuate the main depression results. Conclusion: Dual sensory loss resulted in increased depression symptomatology over time, and posed an additional long-term risk to depression severity beyond having a single sensory loss only. Only hearing loss is associated with anxiety symptoms. Older adults with vision, hearing and dual sensory loss have different mental health profiles. Therefore, management and intervention should be tailored to the type of sensory loss.