Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2014; 18 - a2418
DOI: 10.1055/s-0034-1389031

Comparison of Auditory Processing Skills between Active and Institutionalized Elderly

Sheila Jacques Oppitz 1, Isadora Gonçalves Pelissari 1, Jordana Folgearini 1, Marjana Gois 1, Michele Vargas Garcia 1, Rubia Soares Bruno 1
  • 1Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM)

Introduction: Aging brings changes peripheral and central (auditory processing, AP) at the hearing. AP involves skills such as attention, memory, ordering and temporal resolution, the background and auditory closure, which may have different behaviors according to the life of the elderly, more or less active.

Objective: To compare the AP skills of active and institutionalized elderly through behavioral and electrophysiological tests.

Methods: This is a descriptive, quantitative, and transversal study. The sample was composed by 25 elderly, 12 being institutionalized aged between 60 and 89 years, with average age of 70.8 years, and 13 active aged 62 to 84 years, with an average of 68.9 years. Were submitted Behavioral Audiological assessment, and Electrophysiological tests of the AP (LLAEP Long Latency Auditory Evoked Potential). These work is part of a Biggest-Project developed into a Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. During the AP assessments, sought to comfort and audibility in the testing.

Results: It was12 of institutionalized elderly, all (100%) showed alterations in the ordering and temporal resolution abilities of while the active elderly only 4 (31%) showed this alterations. Regarding to the figure-ground ability for 12 institutionalized just 8 (67%) showed in binaural integration step. Already on binaural separation step just 3 (25%) showed alterations where one only in one ear. While active elderly 9 (69%) showed alterations, that 2 (22%) of them only in one ear. In electrophysiological test LLAEP, all elderly (active and institutionalized), presented the N1and P2 waves with latencies as expected. As for P3 wave just 7 (58%) of institutionalized had not bilaterally while the active elderly only 4 (31%) had not bilaterally.

Conclusion: The active elderly have better auditory skills that institutionalized.