Perception of One's Own Voice After Hearing-Aid Fitting for Naive Hearing-Aid Users and Hearing-Aid Refitting for Experienced Hearing-Aid Users.
Johanna Hengen, Inger L Hammarström, Stefan Stenfelt
PMID 32812519WHAT IT FOUND
First-time hearing aid users reported significantly more problems with the sound of their own voice after fitting, with agreement rising from 7% to 45%.
Experienced users reported fewer own-voice problems after refitting, though most still had some complaints. Voice control issues were linked more to hearing loss than to the aids.
Key findings
01After hearing aid fitting, the proportion of first-time users who agreed that the sound of their own voice was a problem increased from 7% to 45%.
02Experienced hearing aid users reported fewer own-voice problems after refitting, with the proportion reporting no or very low agreement rising from 24% to 42%.
03Both hearing-impaired groups reported significantly more difficulty speaking and hearing simultaneously than the control group, suggesting hearing impairment affects this ability more than hearing aids do.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
High dropout rate (1901 invitations, 210 final participants) may bias results toward those who tolerated hearing aids better. The OVQ questionnaire is not standardized and lacks test-retest reliability, making before-after comparisons less certain. Control group inclusion criteria allowed some individuals with mild hearing loss, potentially underestimating the gap between aided and unaided perception. Most participants used BTE hearing aids, limiting generalizability to other styles.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The study was supported by non-U.S. government funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that hearing aids improve voice quality for new users. While hearing ability improved, first-time users reported significantly more dissatisfaction with the sound of their own voice after fitting. Experienced users' improvement likely reflects better device function compared to old aids, not an inherent benefit of hearing aids on voice perception.