Parkinsons and Cognition

The elderly man who came in about two weeks ago to buy a hearing aid was seen this week for the hearing aid orientation. I felt that the hearing aid chosen was going to be satisfactory for the hearing loss and for the individual patient. However, the patient is in the early stages of Parkinson's. Hearing aid care and cleaning procedure was instructed. I had the patient try to put the battery in the aid and after about 1/2 an hour he finally got it somewhat. Then I moved on to putting the aid in his ear. This task was not easy for the patient. He could not see, even with a mirror and it seemed that he was not listening to the instructions that were given. After this struggle, I wanted to see what is the normal cognition of a Parkinson's patient. I'm not sure if he was being stubborn towards help or if he really did not understand what I was saying. Either way, my patience was tested (which is very uncharacteristic for me). Here is an article that I found on the effects of Parkinson's on cognition. It discusses that these patients have subjective problems in daily life activities. The authors suggest a cognitive remediation program. I would also think that my patient may need aural rehabilitation so he will be able to practice with help from a professional.

Here's the article:

http://web.ebscohost.com.www.libproxy.wvu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=1&hid=17&sid=0d480066-9228-4e8c-a238-cd4e8b504710%40SRCSM2

Koven, NS, Robert, M., Coffey, DJ, Flashman, LA, & Saykin, AJ. (2007). Cognitive performance and self-reported functioning in daily life among those with Parkinson's Disease: A brief report. Internet Journal of Mental Health, Vol. 3, Issue 2.