Background and Purpose: Our study examined the effect of ambient noise on
hearing and school performance in children with hearing loss, and the
relationship between hearing loss and cognition. Method: A pilot study involving 728 people (aged 11 to 16
years) was conducted in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. All
participants completed the ENAFEP test, the SIFTER short scale, pure tone
audiometry, and a three-digit test. Teachers and investigators completed a
6-day listening training course. Results: Correlation and structural equation modeling
indicated that ambient noise and five cognitive domains were associated with
hearing in noise, but only unmeasured cognition was associated with hearing
loss and poor academic performance. Cognitive compensation significantly
reduces communication problems and improves concentration and academic
performance. Noise and deafness had significant and moderate effects on
academic performance (r = -0.13). Conclusion: The sample size and relatively high participation rate meant the study
was representative. However, the results showed an association between ambient
noise, hearing loss and cognition, and reduced school performance. Large-scale
randomized interventions for hearing loss and long-term noise exposure studies
are needed to measure
cognitive outcomes after short- and multi-year noise exposure.
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