Cross-sectional assessment of hearing acuity of an unscreened 85-year-old cohort - Including a 10-year longitudinal study of a sub-sample.

As the proportion of older people increases, it is important to investigate hearing acuity in older individuals and to calculate hearing decline for older ages, using standardised test protocols. The main aim of this study was to determine pure-tone hearing thresholds in an unscreened birth cohort of 85-year-olds born in 1930, living in an industrial Swedish city. A further aim was to describe hearing decline in men and women from 75 to 85 years of age with the aid of longitudinal data. The study was part of the Gothenburg H70 Birth Cohort Studies in Sweden. Hearing thresholds (0.25-8 kHz) were measured using automated pure-tone audiometry for 286 85-year-old participants. A subsample (n = 182) was hearing examined at 75 years of age and studied longitudinally from 75 to 85 years. At age 85 years, men had better hearing at low frequencies but poorer hearing at high frequencies than women. The longitudinal study showed a considerable decline between 75 and 85 years at mid-high frequencies (>1 kHz) and the amount of decline was similar between sexes. The results contribute to the estimation of the future need for hearing health services.

The Gothenburg H70 Birth cohort study 2014-16: design, methods and study population.

To improve health care for older persons, we need to learn more about ageing, e.g. identify protective factors and early markers for diseases. The Gothenburg H70 Birth Cohort Studies (the H70 studies) are multidisciplinary epidemiological studies examining representative birth cohorts of older populations in Gothenburg, Sweden. So far, six birth cohorts of 70-year-olds have been examined over time, and examinations have been virtually identical between studies. This paper describes the study procedures for the baseline examination of the Birth cohort 1944, conducted in 2014-16. In this study, all men and women born 1944 on specific dates, and registered as residents in Gothenburg, were eligible for participation (n = 1839). A total of 1203 (response rate 72.2%; 559 men and 644 women; mean age 70.5 years) agreed to participate in the study. The study comprised sampling of blood and cerebrospinal fluid, psychiatric, cognitive, and physical health examinations, examinations of genetics and family history, use of medications, social factors, functional ability and disability, physical fitness and activity, body composition, lung function, audiological and ophthalmological examinations, diet, brain imaging, as well as a close informant interview, and qualitative studies. As in previous examinations, data collection serves as a basis for future longitudinal follow-up examinations. The research gained from the H70 studies has clinical relevance in relation to prevention, early diagnosis, clinical course, experience of illness, understanding pathogenesis and prognosis. Results will increase our understanding of ageing and inform service development, which may lead to enhanced quality of care for older persons.

Increased Alcohol Consumption Among Swedish 70-Year-Olds 1976 to 2016: Analysis of Data from The Gothenburg H70 Birth Cohort Studies, Sweden.

BACKGROUND: The older adult population is increasing worldwide, as is the number of older adults who consume alcohol. Although there is a growing body of research on alcohol consumption among older people, few studies focus on changes in at-risk consumption over time across well-defined birth cohorts of older adults. METHODS: This study used a serial cross-sectional design in order to compare alcohol consumption patterns among birth cohorts of Swedish 70-year-olds (total n = 2,268) examined in 1976 to 1977 (n = 393), 1992 to 1993 (n = 248), 2000 to 2002 (n = 458), and 2014 to 2016 (n = 1,169). Participants took part in a multidisciplinary study on health and aging. Face-to-face interviews were conducted by healthcare professionals. Protocols regarding alcohol consumption were similar for all cohorts. The volume of weekly alcohol consumption was estimated during the past month. At-risk consumption was defined as ≥100 g alcohol/wk corresponding roughly to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism definition of heavy consumption. RESULTS: The proportion of at-risk consumers among men increased from 16.1% in 1976 to 1977 to 29.9% in 2000 to 2002 (p = 0.001) and 45.3% in 2014 to 2016 (p < 0.001). In women, proportions were low in 1976 to 1977 (0.5%) and 1992 to 1993 (2.0%; p = 0.134), but increased to 9.5% in 2000 to 2002 (p < 0.001) and 24.3% in 2014 to 2016 (p < 0.001). The male:female ratio regarding consumption of ≥100 g/wk decreased from 32.2:1 in 1976 to 1977 to 3.1:1 in 2000 to 2002 to 1.9:1 in 2014 to 2016. Spirit consumption decreased dramatically among men during the study period, while women reported very low spirit consumption at all examinations. Wine consumption increased in both sexes between 2000 to 2002 and 2014 to 2016. Beer consumption increased among men between 2000 to 2002 and 2014 to 2016. CONCLUSIONS: Recent cohorts of 70-year-olds in Sweden report significantly higher levels of alcohol consumption than previous cohorts. There was a dramatic increase in at-risk consumption among 70-year-olds from the 1970s to the mid-2010s, and this was particularly pronounced among women.