The Impact of COVID-19 Confinement on Tinnitus and Hearing Loss in Older Adults: Data From the LOST in Lombardia Study

Jarach, Carlotta Micaela; Lugo, Alessandra; Stival, Chiara; Bosetti, Cristina; Amerio, Andrea; Doro, Luca; Iacoviello, Licia; Odone, Anna; Stuckler, David; Zucchi, Alberto; Brandt, Piet van den; Garavello, Werner; Cederroth, Christopher R.; Schlee, Winfried; Gallus, Silvano

doi:10.3389/fneur.2022.838291

Cited by 8 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…In patients who have not contracted COVID-19, the THI scores and the scores for tinnitus loudness, tinnitus annoyance, tinnitus effect on life, tinnitus effect on sleep, and concentration increased after 2 years of the pandemic; however, that increase was not statistically significant (Table 3). Our data corroborate studies analyzing the effect of pandemic-related confinement on hearing loss and tinnitus in the Italian population (44) or the effect of the pandemic on tinnitus in the German population (45).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Long-Term Effects of COVID-19 and the Pandemic on Tinnitus Patients

et al. 2022

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This study aimed to explore the effect of COVID-19 and the pandemic period on the tinnitus-related complaints of patients with chronic tinnitus. Ninety-six patients who were diagnosed with chronic tinnitus before the pandemic were enrolled in this study. Before the pandemic and in January 2022, all patients used the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) to assess tinnitus loudness, annoyance, and effect on everyday life, sleep, and concentration. Additionally, patients filled the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) and the Hyperacusis Questionnaire (HQ). In the entire cohort, tinnitus loudness, annoyance, and tinnitus-induced difficulties with concentration as well as THI and HQ scores increased significantly during the two pandemic years. Thirty-seven tinnitus patients contracted COVID-19 between March 2020 and January 2022. These patients were asked to list leading COVID-19 symptoms, changes in tinnitus complaints during and after the disease, and whether their hearing abilities were affected. Three patients in the COVID-19 group confirmed worsening their hearing abilities. There was no decrease in the tinnitus complaint during COVID-19, 24.3% of the infected patients reported exacerbation of tinnitus, and 75.7% said tinnitus remained the same. In the COVID-19-negative group, 13.5% reported tinnitus decrease during the pandemic, 57.6% said it remained the same, and 28.8% reported exacerbation of tinnitus. When split into infected and non-infected groups, a significant increase in tinnitus loudness, tinnitus effect on concentration, and THI scores were seen only in patients who contracted COVID-19, while hyperacusis worsened significantly (p < 0.05) only in COVID-19-negative tinnitus patients. Despite significant differences within the groups, there were no differences found between the groups. This study points to possible different effects of the infection with SARS-CoV-2 and the pandemic period on patients with chronic tinnitus. It also provides evidence for deterioration of preexisting tinnitus as a possible long-term effect of COVID-19.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Long-Term Effects of COVID-19 and the Pandemic on Tinnitus Patients

et al. 2022

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“…With the general aim of contributing to fill these gaps in knowledge, we described the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on older adults' access to care −from primary care to self-pay consultations− and investigated associated factors, including sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities, and mental health indicators, using data from a large crosssectional study conducted in northern Italy [18][19][20][21][22][23].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Older Adults’ Access to Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Results from the LOckdown and LifeSTyles (LOST) in Lombardia Project

Vigezzi

Bertuccio

Amerio

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionally affected older people in terms of clinical outcomes and care provision. We aimed to investigate older adults’ changes in access to care during the pandemic and their determinants. We used data from a cross-sectional study (LOST in Lombardia) conducted in autumn 2020 on a representative sample of 4400 older adults from the most populated region in Italy. Lifestyles, mental health, and access to healthcare services before and during the pandemic were collected. To identify factors associated with care delays, reduction in emergency department (ED) access, and hospitalisations, we estimated prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) using multivariable log-binomial regression models. During the pandemic, compared to the year before, 21.5% of the study population increased telephone contacts with the general practitioner (GP) and 9.6% increased self-pay visits, while 22.4% decreased GP visits, 12.3% decreased outpatient visits, 9.1% decreased diagnostic exams, 7.5% decreased ED access, and 6% decreased hospitalisations. The prevalence of care delays due to patient’s decision (overall 23.8%) was higher among men (PR 1.16, 95% CI 1.05–1.29), subjects aged 75 years or more (PR 1.12, 95% CI 1.00–1.25), and those with a higher economic status (p for trend < 0.001). Participants with comorbidities more frequently cancelled visits and reduced ED access or hospitalisations, while individuals with worsened mental health status reported a higher prevalence of care delays and ED access reductions. Access to care decreased in selected sub-groups of older adults during the pandemic with likely negative impacts on mortality and morbidity in the short and long run.

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“…this study aims at describing the influence of the cOVID-19 pandemic and the resulting restrictions on the changes in the use of help from domestic workers, non-familiar caregivers and medical home visits. We also investigated potentially related factors using data from a cross-sectional study on a large representative sample of people aged 65 years or more from the lombardy region [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22], an area of 10 million inhabitants at the centre of the european cOVID-19 emergency.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health and social home services among community-dwelling older people during COVID-19: Results from the cross-sectional LOST in Lombardia project

Bertuccio,

Vigezzi,

Amerio

et al. 2023

Scand J Public Health

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Background: Few studies have focused on changes in health and social services access due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to describe changes in the use of selected health and social home services due to the pandemic and to investigate potential associated factors, including socio-demographic characteristics, number of chronic diseases and mental health indicators, among older Italian individuals. Methods: We analysed data from the LOST in Lombardia cross-sectional study conducted in November 2020 on a large representative sample of 4400 individuals aged ⩾65 years. To identify potential factors associated with the increased use of three selected health and social home services, we estimated odds ratios (OR) and confidence intervals (CI) using multivariable logistic regression models. Results: Compared to the year before, 5.0% of older adults increased help from domestic workers (vs. 6.9% reducing) during the pandemic, 4.4% increased help from non-familiar caregivers (vs. 1.3% decreasing) and 4.7% increased medical home visits (vs. 1.0% decreasing). An increase in the use of these services was more frequent among participants with co-morbidities ( p for trend <0.001), especially with diabetes (for caregivers: OR=12.2, 95% CI 6.0–24.8), and worse mental health (for caregivers and for those with a GAD-2 score ⩾3 vs. <3: OR=10.6, 95% CI 5.8–19.4). Conversely, people living in more crowded households less frequently increased health and social services use during the pandemic. Conclusions: Our results should inform targeted interventions for the identified vulnerable groups to close the gap in health and social inequities.

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The Impact of COVID-19 Confinement on Tinnitus and Hearing Loss in Older Adults: Data From the LOST in Lombardia Study

Cited by 8 publications

References 28 publications

Long-Term Effects of COVID-19 and the Pandemic on Tinnitus Patients

Long-Term Effects of COVID-19 and the Pandemic on Tinnitus Patients

Older Adults’ Access to Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Results from the LOckdown and LifeSTyles (LOST) in Lombardia Project

Health and social home services among community-dwelling older people during COVID-19: Results from the cross-sectional LOST in Lombardia project

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