Third Party Disability among Spouses of People with Hearing Loss

With increasing life expectancy globally, hearing loss has become a major issue of concern. In addition to the negative implications on the people with hearing loss, it is also found to have a significant negative impact on the communication partners especially the spouse. Understanding the impact of hearing loss on their partners can aid us in addressing these issues during rehabilitation. Materials and Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among 60 people who presented with hearing loss and were living with their spouse. The hearing loss was assessed using pure tone audiometry. The third party disability among the spouses was assessed by using HII-SOP questionnaire. The disability scores were calculated and correlated with the severity of hearing loss using chi square test. Results The hearing loss was associated with some degree of third party disability (58.3%). The degree and duration of hearing loss did not correlate with the degree of third party disability. Female significant others had more difficulty than the male significant others. However, increasing age of the spouse, longer duration of married life and presence of chronic illness in the spouse were associated with more third party disability.  Conclusion Hearing loss causes third party disability among spouses. In addition to treating hearing loss, the health care professionals should involve the spouses in treatment and rehabilitation. This highlights the need for family centred policies in treatment of hearing loss.