title: Hearing disability and hearing aid benefit related to type of hearing impairment.
abstract: This study was designed to investigate whether patients with a conductive hearing impairment derive more benefit from the provision of a hearing aid than comparable individuals with a sensorineural hearing impairment. A secondary aim was to assess the relative hearing disability of those with each type of impairment. Twenty-eight patients with a bilateral, symmetrical conductive impairment were selected. They were matched for age, sex and speech frequency average to individuals with a bilateral, symmetrical sensorineural hearing impairment. Each patient performed free-field audio and audio-visual tests in noise, both with and without a hearing aid, during which the non-test ear was acoustically occluded. When unaided, individuals with a conductive impairment were more disabled than those with a sensorineural impairment. On the other hand, those with a conductive impairment derived more benefit from an aid than those with a sensorineural impairment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Royal Infirmary, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: W V
authors.initials: WV
authors.lastname: Carlin
authors.forename: G G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Browning
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001299:Audiometry; D005260:Female; D006310:Hearing Aids; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006314:Hearing Loss, Conductive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged