Sensory Impairment and Health Expectancy in Older Adults

A study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found adults 60 years and older with vision and hearing impairments may have fewer years of life as well as healthy life versus those with no impairments, reports ScienceDaily . People with both hearing and vision impairments had the greatest reduction in health expectancy, and an overall lower life expectancy. At age 60, persons with both impairments could expect a life expectancy about four years shorter than healthy participants, in addition to about three more years of life with limited physical function. Older adults with both impairments could expect to spend 62 percent of their remaining life with restricted physical function, compared to 38 percent for unencumbered adults. Moreover, older adults with both impairments could expect to spend about 31 percent of their remaining life with limitation in activities of daily living, compared to 16 percent of persons with neither impairment. The researchers concluded that spotting and managing these conditions early could potentially extend life lived in good health.