OBJECTIVE: To compare the function of bone anchored hearing aids (BAHA) with conventional air conduction hearing aids (ACHA) by means of objective audiometric tests focusing on temporal acuity and consonant discrimination in quiet and noise, as well as subjective quality-of-life questionnaires. SETTING: Tertiary referral center. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective. SUBJECTS: Patients ...

With increasing longevity among populations, age-related vision and hearing impairments are becoming prevalent conditions in the older adult populations. In combination dual sensory loss occurs. Dual sensory loss is becoming a more common condition seen by clinicians and previous research has shown that 6% of non-institutionalized older adults had a ...

Ensuring consistent audibility is an important objective when fitting hearing aids to children. This article reviews the factors that could affect the audibility of the speech signals to children. These factors range from a precise determination of the child's hearing loss to an accurate specification of gain in the chosen ...

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to compare the results of two measures of hearing aid satisfaction, an indirect measure (Satisfaction with Amplification in Daily Living, SADL; Cox & Alexander, 1999) and a direct measure (an expanded version of the MarkeTrak-IV survey; Kochkin, 1996), in a group of elderly ...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the incidence of boxing accidents is higher in Japan than in other countries. METHOD: A nationwide survey of boxers was conducted. RESULTS: A total of 632 boxers responded. Most Japanese boxers were relatively mature when they started boxing (mean starting age of 19.2 years). A high ...

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to measure hearing aid satisfaction and usage for extended periods of time, up to 2 yr after hearing aid delivery, to determine whether longitudinal changes occur in the elderly for these outcome measures. DESIGN: A longitudinal study of hearing aid satisfaction and usage ...

OBJECTIVE: To compare the functional gain of different Symphonix Soundbridge audioprocessors (HF-processor and D-processor) to preoperatively fitted conventional hearing aids of patients with mild to severe sensorineural hearing loss in the high-frequency range. STUDY DESIGN: In a prospective study, the Symphonix Soundbridge (HF-processor and D-processor) fitting results were evaluated and ...

This study aimed to evaluate current practice in a National Health Service Trust in setting hearing aid output to meet amplification targets prescribed by desired sensation level (DSL) using a range of NHS hearing aids. A consecutive sample of 33 patients was drawn from the hearing aid waiting list of ...

This study reports the results of a large number of hearing-aid benefit measures obtained from 134 elderly hearing-aid wearers during the first year of hearing-aid usage. Benefit measures were obtained after 1 month, 6 months, and 1 year of hearing-aid use by all participants. In addition, follow-up measurements of hearing-aid ...

OBJECTIVE: Because the NIDCD/VA Hearing Aid Clinical Trial was conducted across eight clinical sites, rigorous control of the electroacoustic characteristics of the experimental devices was required. DESIGN: The parameters monitored included the gain and output of the approximately 720 hearing aids in the trial, measured both in the 2 cm3 ...

Fitting hearing aids on young infants presents a unique set of problems, and to some extent, requires a unique set of skills. First, a complete, frequency-specific evoked potential assessment is needed to define the loss and establish hearing aid fitting targets. The selected hearing aids must be flexible and must ...

OBJECTIVE: Subjective measures of performance were assessed on three different hearing aid circuits as part of a large clinical trial. These measurements included the Profile of Hearing Aid Performance and a subjective ranking of individual preference. DESIGN: A multi-center, double-masked clinical trial of hearing aids was conducted at eight VA ...

OBJECTIVES: This study compared speech recognition performance on the Northwestern University Auditory Test No. 6 (NU-6) and the Connected Speech Test (CST) for three hearing aid circuits (peak clipping [PC], compression limiting [CL], and wide dynamic range compression [WDRC]) in adults with symmetrical sensorineural hearing loss. The study also questioned ...

This article describes the organization and administration of the NIDCD/VA Hearing Aid Clinical Trial. The trial involved a total of 360 patients with bilateral, sensorineural hearing loss from eight VA Medical Centers to study three different hearing aid circuits in a three-period, three-treatment crossover design. Strong central coordination of such ...

OBJECTIVE: Although numerous studies have demonstrated that hearing aids provide significant benefit, carefully controlled, multi-center clinical trials have not been conducted. A multi-center clinical trial was conducted to compare the efficacy of three commonly used hearing aid circuits: peak clipping, compression limiting, and wide dynamic range compression. DESIGN: Patients (N ...

Older patients represent the majority of hearing-aid users. The needs of elderly, hearing-impaired subjects are not entirely identified. The present study aims to determine the importance of fundamental hearing-aid attributes and to elicit the utility of associated hypothetical hearing aids for older patients. This was achieved using a questionnaire-based conjoint ...

The electromagnetic interference of the recently introduced bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA) model "BAHA Compact" by digital cellular phones is investigated and compared with that of the older "BAHA Classic 300" model. Measurements with two different digital cellular phones in a laboratory setting indicated that the noise level due to electromagnetic ...

This study compared the real-ear response provided by custom-fit hearing aids to the closest matching fixed-format disposable hearing aids in patients with precipitous high-frequency hearing loss. Laboratory and field measures of aided performance were obtained to compare patient performance with the custom-fit and fixed-format hearing aids. In addition, coupler versus ...

BACKGROUND: The present study explored factors that influenced older individuals' subjective perception of hearing problems. In addition to objectively screened hearing ability, nonauditory factors such as stressful life conditions (visual impairment, chronic disease, disability, and recent stressful life events), neuroticism, and social resources were hypothesized to be predictors of self-perceived ...

In conventional audiological rehabilitation, the hearing therapist interacts with the hearing-impaired person and with significant others. In order to strengthen the personality and self-confidence of the hearing-impaired individual, a different strategy was designed and implemented whereby the pedagogic interaction was directed only towards the hearing-impaired individual, who in turn worked ...

The Birmingham bone-anchored hearing aid programme began in 1988 and by autumn 2000 a total of 351 patients had been fitted with such an aid. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of hearing rehabilitation with the bone-anchored hearing aid. This was a prospective interview-based questionnaire study ...

Noise-induced hearing loss is a significant, irreversible impairment, but one that is preventable. The numbers of persons, including children, exposed to high noise is increasing, necessitating the use of hearing protection if the noise cannot be reduced to a safe level. The effectiveness of interventions has been tested with select ...

The Birmingham bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA) programme has fitted more than 300 patients with unilateral bone-anchored hearing aids since 1988. Some of the patients who benefited well with unilateral aids and who had used bilateral conventional aids previously applied for bilateral amplification. To date, 15 patients have been fitted with ...

The purpose of this questionnaire study was to evaluate the existing knowledge of binaural hearing and the attitudes and practices of prescribing bilateral hearing aids amongst otolaryngologists in the United Kingdom. Of the 950 questionnaires sent to the current members of the British Association of Otolaryngologists and Head and Neck ...

Hearing aids currently available on the market with both omnidirectional and directional microphone modes often have reduced amplification in the low frequencies when in directional microphone mode due to better phase matching. The effects of this low-frequency gain reduction for individuals with hearing loss in the low frequencies was of ...

The purpose of this study was to identify characteristics of everyday listening situations that influence user preferences for omnidirectional versus directional hearing aid microphones. Eleven experienced hearing aid users were fitted with digital hearing aids featuring switchable omnidirectional (OMNI) and adaptive-directional (DIR) modes (programs). For 6 weeks, their task was ...

By spring 2000, a total of 351 patients were implanted in the Birmingham bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA) programme. This group consisted of 242 adults and 109 children. The aim of this retrospective questionnaire study was to directly assess patient satisfaction with their current bone-anchored hearing aid in comparison with their ...

This study explored the use patterns and benefits of directional microphone technology in real-world situations experienced by patients who had been fitted with switchable omnidirectional/directional hearing aids. Telephone interviews and paper-and-pencil questionnaires were used to assess perceived performance with each microphone type in a variety of listening situations. Patients who ...

BACKGROUND: Reduced hearing in elderly people is important because it is disabling and potentially treatable. We aimed to assess the prevalence of reduced hearing in elderly people and levels of ownership of hearing aids and use. METHODS: We have done a cross-sectional survey of people aged at least 75 years ...

A number of studies have brought out the limitations of hearing aids in the rehabilitation of hearing impaired. This study was undertaken to assess the use of hearing aids in improving the ability of the hearing impaired to hear vehicular horns. The students of a school for the hearing impaired ...

Patients with bilateral conductive hearing losses continue to be a source of frustration for both otologists and audiologists. Efforts to rehabilitate their hearing have included medical and surgical treatment, as well as the use of conventional hearing aids and, less frequently, conventional bone-conduction hearing aids. In the late 1980s, a ...

OBJECTIVES: The goal of the study was to evaluate the performance of a semi-implantable middle ear hearing device (Vibrant Soundbridge System [VSB]; Symphonix Devices, Inc). STUDY DESIGN: A prospective, single-subject, repeated-measures multicenter study was conducted to determine the safety and efficacy of the VSB using analog and digital external processors. ...

In this study, we present a new method to derive a single-number measure of the directivity of hearing aids. The method is an extension of the conventional directivity index (DI), and is called overall directivity index (ODI). The directivities of five different hearing aid styles were compared with that of ...

The International Outcome Inventory-Hearing Aids (IOI-HA) was administered to 161 consecutive patients who had been fitted with hearing aids just prior to their being discharged from the clinic. Most also completed the Client-oriented Scale of Improvement (COSI). Very few questions (<2%) were not completed. Analyses indicated two subscales of IOI-HA, ...

The International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA) is a seven-item questionnaire designed to be generally applicable in evaluating the effectiveness of hearing aid treatments. The inventory was developed to facilitate cooperation among researchers and program evaluators in diverse settings. It is brief and general enough to be appended to ...

Two extensions of the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids are described: the first is designed for the significant other (SO) (IOI-HA-SO), and the second for alternative interventions for hearing difficulties (IOI-AI). A feature of the IOI-HA-SO is that several items are modified to inquire about effects of the partner's ...

Presbycusis is the most common form of hearing loss caused by aging and long-term exposure to sound energy. This type of ailment decreases the ear's ability to perceive high frequencies and localize sound, thus making comprehension more difficult. To compensate for this loss, the choice of a digital hearing aid ...

This paper presents data on the Dutch translation of the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA). The inventory was used as an additional postal tool in a nationwide study on the benefits of bilateral hearing aid fitting. Responses of 505 hearing aid users were analysed. Descriptive statistics and inter-item ...

In a clinical experiment, it was found that there is a high correlation between the compliance measured by tympanometry and the minimum size of the earmold vent, which just solves the client's occlusion problem related to his/her own voice when using a hearing aid. For ears with sensorineural hearing losses, ...

Numerous international studies have demonstrated a relationship between HIV/AIDS and auditory function. The aim of this study was to explore this relationship in a group of adults infected with HIV/AIDS attending an outpatient clinic in a hospital located in Gauteng, South Africa. The prevalence of hearing loss; the type, degree ...

OBJECTIVE: To validate the Australian National Acoustic Laboratories' (NAL) procedure for prescribing output sound pressure level (OSPL) for multichannel hearing aids (Dillon & Storey, 1998) DESIGN: The NAL OSPL prescriptive procedure for multichannel hearing aids was used to calculate Predicted OSPL, Predicted Maximum Acceptable OSPL and Predicted Minimum Acceptable OSPL ...

Hearing impairment impacts on the lives of almost half of people over the age of 65. For many people, a hearing aid or other assistive device can enhance communication. However, there is a high rate of dissatisfaction with hearing aids among those who currently use, or have used them in ...

We designed a new type of nonlinear digital hearing aid (TD-1) with near-instantaneous amplitude compression for sensorineural hearing-impaired people. The amplification method utilized by the TD-1 normalizes the signal waveforms within a time window bounded by two adjacent positive going zero-crossing points. The signals within this window are amplified so ...

An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of completely-in-the-canal (CIC) hearing aids on auditory localization performance. Six normal-hearing listeners localized a 750-ms broadband noise from loudspeakers ranging in azimuth from -180 degrees to +180 degrees and in elevation from -75 degrees to +90 degrees. Independent variables included the presence ...

The aim of this study was to determine whether participation restrictions and contextual factors could be elicited in an elderly hearing-impaired population using an open-ended questionnaire. The study also tested the value of the World Health Organization's ICF in the classification of the problems experienced by the elderly hearing-impaired. To ...

It is widely recognised that preverbal communication skills underpin development of spoken language. This historical review outlines the establishment of a quantitative methodology for assessing preverbal communication skills in children with hearing aids and cochlear implants. The method is shown to be reliable and free from observer bias. The review ...

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate 1) whether a hearing aid needs to be adjusted differently depending on whether a child wears a cochlear implant or another hearing aid in the contralateral ear; 2) whether the use of a hearing aid and a cochlear implant in opposite ...

The use of bone-anchored hearing aids is not possible for all patients who wear an implant-retained auricular prosthesis. For some patients, the external ear canal cannot be occluded with a conventional hearing device. Currently manufactured hearing aids may not readily fit the contours of an implant-retained auricular prosthesis. This article ...

Hearing impairment is a common ailment in older adults. However, the acceptance of hearing aids by hearing-impaired individuals remains poor. The main reasons given by hearing-impaired individuals for not acquiring a hearing aid are primarily psychosocial in nature. Research suggests that individuals with hearing loss believe that wearing hearing aids ...

BACKGROUND: Little is known about quality of life after the use of specific types of hearing aids, so it is difficult to determine whether technologies such as programmable circuits and directional microphones are worth the added expense. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of an assistive listening device, a nonprogrammable nondirectional ...