The Performance-Perceptual Test as a Counseling Tool (PPT)

US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Hearing Impairment

Treatments: Behavioral: Standard Educational Counseling; Behavioral: PPT-based Counseling

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT00126113

05-2504 (Other Identifier)

C3951-R

11-2104 (Other Identifier)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of the study is to determine whether a new test of ability to understand speech in noise and an associated counseling program can improve hearing aid satisfaction. Participants complete routine hearing tests, some hearing-related questionnaires and the new speech test. One group of participants receives the new form of counseling, the second group does not. Hearing aid satisfaction following 10 weeks hearing aid use is compared across the groups.

Full description

Hearing aid dissatisfaction continues to be disappointingly high, even though hearing aid technology has improved dramatically over the last 10 years or so. Unfortunately, the results of most commonly used self-report measures cannot be directly compared with the results from performance measures since the modes of testing are very different. Thus, it is hard for clinicians to reconcile data from individuals reporting more handicap or less hearing aid satisfaction than would be expected from their performance.

In this study, the investigators use a test known as the Performance-Perceptual Test (PPT) to determine whether simple counseling based upon discussion of PPT results can be used to better align perceived and measured ability to understand speech-in-noise; and, more importantly, whether such counseling can decrease reported handicap and improve hearing aid satisfaction.

Hearing aid users complete the PPT for aided and unaided listening, along with standardized questionnaires measuring reported auditory disability, handicap and hearing aid satisfaction. Following this, subjects are randomly assigned to one of two groups. Subjects in Group 1 receive counseling from the experimenter in the form of an explanation and discussion of their PPT results. Subjects in Group 2 also participate in a discussion with the experimenter, but it does not include an explanation of the PPT. Two weeks after enrollment in the study subjects complete a second set of questionnaires. Ten weeks after study enrollment subjects return to the laboratory to rerun the test battery. The impact of the counseling upon PPT values, reported handicap and hearing aid satisfaction and benefit will be compared across the two groups.

Enrollment: 74 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 45 to 65 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Mild-to-moderate symmetrical sensorineural hearing loss
• Current users of binaural hearing aids

Exclusion criteria

• Conductive hearing impairment or other otological pathology
• A score less than age-based norms on the Mini Mental State Examination
• Asymmetrical hearing loss
• No prior use of hearing aids

Trial design

74 participants in 2 patient groups

PPT-based Counseling

Experimental group

Description:

Counseling based on Performance-Perceptual Discrepancy (PPDIS) consisting of explanation of hearing tests plus recommendations based on PPDIS

Treatment:

Behavioral: PPT-based Counseling

Standard Educational Counseling

Other group

Description:

Standard educational counseling consisting of explanation of hearing tests

Treatment:

Behavioral: Standard Educational Counseling