Postural Control While Listening in Younger and Middle-Aged Adults.
Karen S Helfer, Richard L Freyman, Richard van Emmerik and 1 others
PMID 32149925WHAT IT FOUND
Middle-aged adults with near-normal hearing showed poorer balance than younger adults while listening to competing speech, even when speech scores were similar.
Balance worsened as listening became harder. This suggests listening effort drains cognitive resources needed for stability, potentially raising fall risk in noisy environments.
Key findings
01Middle-aged adults had significantly larger dual-task costs (reduction in balance performance while listening) for competing speech maskers compared to noise, whereas younger adults did not.
02Postural control was worse in middle-aged adults than younger adults during dual-task conditions, particularly in tandem stance with noise, despite similar speech recognition scores.
03Self-rated listening effort correlated with postural control deficits in normal stance, suggesting the balance task may serve as an objective measure of listening effort.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was exploratory and potentially underpowered, with several statistical trends that did not reach significance. Baseline balance was measured in quiet, but sound can enhance balance; this may have inflated the calculated dual-task costs. Vestibular function was not explicitly assessed, only screened by questionnaire. The sample size was small (n=15 per group), and the middle-aged group had variable, though mostly mild, high-frequency hearing loss.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that middle-aged adults with normal hearing scores are safe to stand and listen in noisy environments. This study shows their balance deteriorates significantly under these conditions, even when they understand the speech well. Do not use this as evidence that hearing aids will improve balance; the link is between cognitive load and postural control, not just audibility.