The purpose of this study was to compare the use of behind-the-ear and in-the-ear hearing aids with a geriatric population. The aids were compared to see which type of aid the subjects could learn to use most easily and to see which type of aid they preferred to use.Subjects were fitted with acoustically similar in-the-ear and behind-the-ear hearing aids for alternate one week periods. The aids were evaluated in two ways: 1) A rating scale evaluating the subjects’ abilities to use the hearing aid (insert battery, insert aid, remove aid, remove battery, adjust volume) and 2) A questionnaire exploring the subjects’ reaction to care of hearing aid use and general aid preference.With respect to the rating scale, no significant differences were found. Subjects could perform the tasks covered with both types of aids. With respect to the questionnaire, significant differences were found in favor of the in-the-ear hearing aid. In general, the results of this study tend to indicate that geriatric subjects can handle in-the-ear hearing aids and behind-the-ear hearing aids with about equal success but that they have a clear preference for in-the-ear hearing aids.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BSU/oai:cardinalscholar.bsu.edu:handle/182077 |
| Date | January 1979 |
| Creators | Murphy, Linda J. |
| Contributors | Hemeyer, Thomas F. |
| Source Sets | Ball State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | ii, i, 62 leaves : charts ; 28 cm. |
| Source | Virtual Press |
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