Demographic and Audiological Characteristics of Candidates for Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids in the United States.
Larry E Humes
PMID 38816904WHAT IT FOUND
About 49.5 million US adults self-report mild-to-moderate hearing trouble, the group targeted for over-the-counter aids.
Most are 50 to 69 years old, non-Hispanic White, and have not had a hearing test in over five years. Their hearing loss is often symmetrical and high-frequency, but many have normal audiograms.
Key findings
01Approximately 49.5 million US adults (21.2%) report 'a little' or 'moderate' hearing trouble, making them the primary candidates for over-the-counter hearing aids.
02Among these candidates, 60% of those aged 20 to 69 years have hearing classified as 'normal' by World Health Organization standards, compared to only 10% of those aged 70 to 80+ years.
03Over 50% of potential over-the-counter hearing aid candidates have not had a hearing test in the past five years, and about 50 to 65% have a history of significant occupational noise exposure.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The definition of candidacy relies on a single self-report question ('a little' or 'moderate' trouble) which may not perfectly align with clinical diagnoses of mild-to-moderate hearing loss. Audiological data were only available for a subset of participants (those who completed the mobile examination center assessment), though the study found these groups were largely representative. The study is cross-sectional, so it describes characteristics but cannot determine causality or long-term outcomes of OTC hearing aid use. Income and education data were collected via self-report and may be subject to recall or social desirability bias.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that patients with 'normal' or 'mild' audiometric results do not need clinical intervention. Many OTC candidates have significant speech-in-noise difficulties and emotional frustration despite passing standard hearing thresholds, suggesting that audiogram alone is insufficient for determining candidacy or care needs.