Hearing Aid Satisfaction and Usage Patterns across Age Groups: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

This study aimed to evaluate hearing aid satisfaction and usage patterns across different age groups and to investigate the impact of hearing aids on quality of life.

Hearing aid satisfaction and perceived benefit were evaluated using the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA), administered via phone interview after at least 6 months of use. A total of 850 patients who were prescribed hearing aids for the first time at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology between January 2020 and January 2023 were retrospectively analyzed.

The mean age of participants was 65.4 ± 13.4 years, and the prevalence of sensorineural hearing loss increased significantly with age. Pure tone thresholds and word recognition scores (WRSs) were lower in the older age groups. However, no significant differences were found in IOI-HA scores across the age categories. The WRS was the only significant predictor of total IOI-HA scores (B = 0.016, p = 0.009, R2 = 0.010). Behind-the-ear hearing aids were more commonly used among older participants.

Hearing aid satisfaction did not differ according to age, and the severity of hearing loss alone was not a strong determinant. Speech discrimination ability was identified as a consistent predictor of perceived benefit.