A new study has found that hearing problems, including tinnitus, may appear years before memory loss in people who develop early-onset Alzheimer's disease. The research, published in Alzheimer's & Dementia, was conducted by scientists at the University of Oulu and the University of Eastern Finland.
On BBC Morning Live, Dr Oscar Duke explained that the study looked at people diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's before age 65, comparing them to those without the condition. He said the findings showed a statistically significant association with hearing loss and tinnitus.
Study findings on early symptoms
Dr Duke told hosts Rav Wilding and Louise Minchin: "This is a study from Finland, and what they did they were looking at particularly people with early-onset Alzheimer's disease. So that's under the age of 65."
He added: "They looked at 407 people in that category and compared them to 4,000 normal people without that condition to see what sort of symptoms might have been linked or associated to Alzheimer's disease."
Dr Duke noted: "Yes, they did find that there's a small difference, but a statistically significant one in this study in terms of association with problems like hearing loss and tinnitus - that sort of ringing high-pitched frequency noises within your ear."
Possible explanations for the link
Dr Duke said medical research has linked hearing issues with Alzheimer's for some time, but experts still debate whether there is a direct cause. He explained that hearing loss might reduce brain stimulation, or that a similar process could cause both conditions.
He said: "There's no direct cause in any studies but there's certainly been association, and what we're seeing a lot now is people are coming in worried about their memory but they're often being forced in and pushed in by their family."
Dr Duke highlighted the "huge impact" of hearing loss, noting it can lead to isolation, worsening mood, anxiety, and depression, but is often easily supported with hearing aids and other devices.
Twice as likely to report ear problems
The study found that in the six to 10 years before an Alzheimer's diagnosis, people are twice as likely to report hearing problems such as ringing in the ears and nerve-related hearing loss. Experts suggest early plaques in the brain may harm the area that processes sound, or that the effort of understanding sounds reduces brain energy for other tasks.
American healthcare researcher Neal K Shah said: "Six to 10 years out before the diagnosis - out of all 23 categories - one and only one warning light flashed: Oto rhino laryngological diseases." He noted that future patients were more than twice as likely to have ear conditions, with 4.7% in the study versus 2.1% in controls, climbing to 5.2% versus 2.9% in the final five years.
According to the NHS, dementia is an umbrella term for a syndrome causing ongoing decline in brain functioning, and it is not a normal part of aging. People with Alzheimer's may also experience difficulty finding words, problems planning tasks, confusion, poor judgement, mood changes, withdrawal from activities, and misplacing items.
