Evaluation of the Benefits of Bilateral Fitting in Bone-Anchored Hearing System Users: Spatial Resolution and Memory for Speech.

The listeners were already bilaterally implanted and used two processors daily, so the unilateral condition was an acute change and may not reflect people who use one BAHS all the time. The study included 24 listeners, and subgroup findings were based on small or unbalanced groups, including four listeners above 65 years and seven simultaneously implanted listeners. Blinding was imperfect because the experimenter changed processors between conditions, and one processor was muted in the unilateral condition. The SSQ12 scores described everyday performance with the participants' own processors, not with the test processors used in the laboratory. The localization test measured right-left discrimination, not multi-source localization, so a small laboratory angle does not necessarily mean accurate everyday localization. Gain was prescribed with a standard method without individual control for interaural symmetry. The paper does not state a single primary outcome, and the memory result was null while secondary list and subgroup effects were reported.

The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The article is listed as supported by non-U.S. government.

Do not read the subgroup and single-list memory results as evidence that bilateral BAHS fitting improves memory for speech. The overall condition effect was not significant, and the authors say more investigation is needed.