Technology and chronic conditions in later years: Reasons for new hope

As we age, we experience normal declines in vision, hearing, cognition, and movement. We also may accumulate chronic conditions such as arthritis, stroke, heart and circulatory disorders, glaucoma, and tinnitus. While these age-related declines and chronic conditions have the potential to severely affect our ability to do everyday tasks, it is possible to design our environment, and add tools—assistive devices—that facilitate independence. Many assistive devices are common “mechanical” tools such as wheelchairs, walkers, bath seats, and magnifiers. Electronic assistive devices, many of which use computer-based technology, further extend the potential of helping a person remain independent. These include voice-output devices for people who are blind, assistive-listening devices for people with hearing impairment, reminder devices for people with cognitive impairment, and power-assisted wheelchairs for people with mobility impairment. Assistive devices such as these are effective in reducing the impact of declines in functional status and in reducing health-related costs (Mann, Ottenbacher, Fraas, Tomita, & Granger, 1999).