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Deafness funding 'must improve'

23/11/2007

Greater funding into hearing disorders would have a significant impact on people's lives, a leading medical journal claims today.

The Lancet says that research funding into deafness in the UK is about one thousandth of the estimated lost productivity from hearing impairment.

Each year productivity losses related to hearing disorders cost the UK about £13.5 billion whereas just £16.5 million is invested annually.

Recent research found that 12 per cent of adults aged 55 to 74 had substantially impaired hearing, which on average had been present for a decade.

"Yet only three per cent used a hearing aid, suggesting widespread unmet need," the Lancet editorial states.

It adds that the number of people with a hearing impairment could increase in parallel with ageing populations worldwide to 700 million by 2015.

As well as potentially reducing productivity losses relating to hearing problems, the Lancet says greater research could have a substantial impact on quality of life.

It is estimated that a quarter of the UK's nine million hearing-impaired people are aged 16 to 60 years, for whom their condition can have a negative effect on educational, social and employment opportunities.

"Hearing aids can help relieve symptoms, but further interventions are needed to prevent, delay or reverse hearing damage," the editorial concludes.

"Although the many determinants of hearing make research complex, successful strategies would have not only a large and lucrative market, but also great social value."