My Mother Is 89 She Can’t Hear Very Well At

Posted on Thu, 13 Dec 2018

Question: My mother is 89 she can’t hear very well at all she has hearing aids but doesn’t were them. The problem is she hears people that are not real she sometimes gets afraid of them but as far as remembering thing she can her regular doctor gave her risperidone. She thinks it has to with not being able to hear I’m just not sure I would like to know if there something else it could be

Answered by Dr. Seikhoo Bishnoi (39 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
This could be due to auditory hallucinations.

Detailed Answer:
Hello thanks for using ask a doctor service

I can understand your concern. She is 89 and age could be one of causes of the problem she is having. With advancing age brain parenchyma becomes atrophied and this results in progressive cognitive decline, forgetfulness, poor judgement, abnormal behaviour and sometimes even psychotic symptoms like she is having. She is hearing voices which other can't hear. This might be due to auditory hallucinations.

Her routine blood investigations should be done. Blood sugar, serum electrolytes should be measured. Altered sugar levels or deranged electrolytes can cause similar symptoms.

If everything comes normal then most likely cause of her auditory hallucinations is some psychotic issue. Risperidone is right drug for these symptoms. If she is not getting relief then dose can be increased. Alternatively other drugs like Olanzapine or Quetiapine can be used for relief. You can talk with her doctor for this.

Thanks

Please don't hesitate to ask again if you have more doubts.

Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T