Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
PLoS One. 2023 Jul 19;18(7):e0288434. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0288434. eCollection 2023.
The aging population is prone to hearing loss, which has several adverse effects on quality of life, including difficulty following conversations in noisy environments. Personal Sound Amplification Products (PSAPs) are a less expensive, over-the-counter alternative to traditional, more expensive hearing aids. Although some studies have shown that PSAPs can mitigate hearing loss, the literature generally only addresses group differences without considering interindividual variability. This study aimed to 1) determine how PSAPs affect listening effort and speech perception in noise and 2) measure interindividual variability and identify contributing demographic and health factors.
We used a cross-over design in which all participants were assigned to each condition.
Twenty-eight adults aged 60 to 87 years with normal hearing and mild hearing loss fulfilled the study requirements.
In one session, speech-in-noise perception tasks were performed without PSAPs, and in the other, the tasks were performed with bilateral PSAPs. The two sessions were separated by one week, and the order of the sessions was balanced across participants.
In both sessions, participants performed the Quick speech-in-noise test and a word discrimination task in noise, in which their self-reported listening effort was measured.
PSAPs use improved speech perception in noise in both tasks and reduced listening effort. There was considerable variability between individuals, with approximately 60-70% of participants showing benefit. Age, hearing and cognitive status were significant predictors of the benefits.
Not all individuals may benefit from the effect of PSAPs to the same extent at their first use, and this depends on specific health and demographic factors, particularly age, hearing, and cognitive status. These results underscore the importance of demographic and health factors in assessing the benefits of hearing amplification in older adults.
ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05076045.
人口老龄化容易导致听力损失，这对生活质量有几个不利影响，包括在嘈杂环境中难以跟上对话。个人声音增强产品（PSAP）是一种更便宜的、非处方的替代传统、更昂贵的助听器的选择。尽管一些研究表明 PSAP 可以减轻听力损失，但文献通常只解决群体差异，而不考虑个体间的可变性。本研究旨在：1）确定 PSAP 如何影响噪声中的听力努力和言语感知；2）测量个体间的可变性，并确定促成的人口统计学和健康因素。
我们使用交叉设计，所有参与者都被分配到每个条件。
28 名年龄在 60 至 87 岁之间、听力正常和轻度听力损失的成年人符合研究要求。
在一个会话中，不使用 PSAP 进行噪声中的言语感知任务，而在另一个会话中，使用双侧 PSAP 进行任务。两个会话之间相隔一周，会话的顺序在参与者之间平衡。
在两个会话中，参与者都执行了 Quick 噪声中的言语测试和噪声中的单词辨别任务，同时测量了他们的自我报告的听力努力。
PSAP 在两个任务中都改善了噪声中的言语感知，并减少了听力努力。个体之间存在相当大的可变性，约 60-70%的参与者受益。年龄、听力和认知状态是受益的显著预测因素。
并非所有个体在首次使用 PSAP 时都能从其效果中获得相同程度的益处，这取决于特定的健康和人口统计学因素，特别是年龄、听力和认知状态。这些结果强调了在评估老年人大声放大的益处时，人口统计学和健康因素的重要性。
ClinicalTrials.gov，NCT05076045。
