Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on LinkedIn
Share by Email
Print
HealthDay News — Self-fitting, over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids produce self-reported and clinical outcomes similar to those of audiologist-fitted hearing aids for adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, according to a study published online April 13 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
Karina C. De Sousa, PhD, from University of Pretoria in South Africa, and colleagues compared the clinical effectiveness of a self-fitting OTC hearing aid with remote support and smartphone application to a hearing aid fitted using audiologist-fitted best practices. The analysis included 64 adults with self-perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss randomly assigned to self-fitting or audiologist-fitted hearing aids. Outcome measures were completed at baseline, at 2 weeks, and at 6 weeks following hearing aid fitting.
The researchers found that after two weeks, the self-fitting group had an initial advantage versus the audiologist-fitted group on the self-reported Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit and International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids, but not speech recognition in noise. However, at 6 weeks, no significant differences existed between the groups on any outcome measures.
“These findings suggest that a self-fitting OTC hearing aid may be an effective intervention option for individuals with mild-to-moderate hearing loss and produce self-perceived and clinical outcomes similar to those of an audiologist-fitted hearing aid,” the authors write.
The authors disclosed financial ties to the funder, hearX group. The funder provided the Lexie Lumen devices and software support.
