Dr. Frank Lin is a junior faculty member in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head &Neck Surgery at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine where his clinical practice is dedicated to hearing loss and otology. He previously completed a Ph.D in Clinical Investigation at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health where he applied conceptual models of functioning developed by the World Health Organization to the assessment of pediatric cochlear implantation (CI). With the support of this Mentored Career Development Award, Dr. Lin seeks to better understand the impact of hearing loss on the health and functioning of older adults and the role of therapeutic modalities such as CI in mitigating these effects. Dr. Lin will enhance his research knowledge and skills with coursework in geriatrics and biostatistics, receive directed mentorship by an interdisciplinary team of experienced clinical researchers, and be immersed in the interdisciplinary research and clinical environments of the Longitudinal Studies Section of the National Institute on Aging, the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health, the Johns Hopkins Dana Center for Preventive Ophthalmology, and the Johns Hopkins Listening Center. This CDA will provide Dr. Lin with the resources that he needs to become an independent investigator and future leader in hearing loss and clinical research. Building on his prior research experience in utilizing conceptual models of health outcomes, Dr. Lin has developed a novel framework to understand and study the impact of hearing loss on older adults that draws on the fields of cognitive psychology, social epidemiology, gerontology, and the hearing sciences.
In Aim 1, he will use four established prospective datasets to study the effects of hearing loss on domains of cognition, social isolation, dementia, functional decline, health care expenditures, and mortality. This work will establish the basis for the impact of hearing loss in aging.
In Aim 2, he will prospectively recruit adult patients undergoing CI at the Listening Center into a study examining the effects of CI on domains of health and functioning. This work will inform strategies for hearing aid and cochlear implant delivery and future clinical trials of hearing loss interventions.

Public Health Relevance

The impact of hearing loss on older adults is poorly understood despite the growing prevalence of hearing loss and the rapidly aging population. Studying the effects of hearing loss on critical domains of aging such as cognition, dementia, and functioning will allow us to understand how aural rehabilitative modalities and preventative interventions could be utilized to improve the health and functioning of older adults.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23DC011279-04
Application #
8587475
Study Section
Communication Disorders Review Committee (CDRC)
Program Officer
Sklare, Dan
Project Start
2010-12-01
Project End
2015-11-30
Budget Start
2013-12-01
Budget End
2014-11-30
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
$236,654
Indirect Cost
$17,530
Name
Johns Hopkins University
Department
Otolaryngology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
001910777
City
Baltimore
State
MD
Country
United States
Zip Code
21218
Choi, Janet S; Shim, Kyoo S; Kim, Kunhwa et al. (2018) Understanding Hearing Loss and Barriers to Hearing Health Care Among Korean American Older Adults: A Focus Group Study. J Appl Gerontol 37:1344-1367
Contrera, Kevin J; Betz, Josh; Deal, Jennifer et al. (2017) Association of Hearing Impairment and Anxiety in Older Adults. J Aging Health 29:172-184
Deal, Jennifer A; Betz, Josh; Yaffe, Kristine et al. (2017) Hearing Impairment and Incident Dementia and Cognitive Decline in Older Adults: The Health ABC Study. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 72:703-709
Nirmalasari, Olivia; Mamo, Sara K; Nieman, Carrie L et al. (2017) Age-related hearing loss in older adults with cognitive impairment. Int Psychogeriatr 29:115-121
Edwards, Jerri D; Lister, Jennifer J; Lin, Frank R et al. (2017) Association of Hearing Impairment and Subsequent Driving Mobility in Older Adults. Gerontologist 57:767-775
Contrera, Kevin J; Sung, Yoon K; Betz, Joshua et al. (2017) Change in loneliness after intervention with cochlear implants or hearing aids. Laryngoscope 127:1885-1889
Mamo, Sara K; Oh, Esther; Lin, Frank R (2017) Enhancing Communication in Adults with Dementia and Age-Related Hearing Loss. Semin Hear 38:177-183
Kim, Min-Beom; Zhang, Yiyi; Chang, Yoosoo et al. (2017) Diabetes mellitus and the incidence of hearing loss: a cohort study. Int J Epidemiol 46:717-726
Mamo, Sara K; Nirmalasari, Olivia; Nieman, Carrie L et al. (2017) Hearing Care Intervention for Persons with Dementia: A Pilot Study. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 25:91-101
Nieman, Carrie L; Marrone, Nicole; Mamo, Sara K et al. (2017) The Baltimore HEARS Pilot Study: An Affordable, Accessible, Community-Delivered Hearing Care Intervention. Gerontologist 57:1173-1186

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