Seleção e adaptação de próteses auditivas em idosos: características individuais, expectativas e sucesso

Abstract

This study had the objective to analyze some of the aspects involved in the process of selecting and fitting hearing aids, order to verify the possible influence on the expectations of elderly patients as to the results with the use of amplification, as well as the relationship of these expectations with the success of auditory reh abilitation. Were considered as criteria for inclusion in the sample: elderly individuals, patie nts with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, symmetric, mild to moderately severe degree, with i ndication of using hearing aids bilaterally, without previous experience as a user of it and abs ence of any cognitive impairment. The sample was constituted of 16 subjects, aged between 64 and 94 years old. The evaluation was performed at two different times: 15 days befor e and 15 days after the fitting of hearing aids. Subjects responded, firstly, to an anamnesis, which provided information regarding age, occupation and educational level of subjects studie d, beyond the motivation for the use of hearing aids and presence or absence of a companion . For analysis of the expectations, was applied the Questionnaire for expectations evaluat ion of the adult / elderly, new user of the hearing aids , followed by the Hearing Handicap Inv entory for the Elderly - Screening Version HHIE/S, to measure the individual's participation constraint with and without the use of hearing aids. The overall benefit with the use of h earing aids was evaluated using the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids IOI-HA. The communicative performance was evaluated by determining the Percentage Index S entence Recognition in Quiet (PISRQ), using the Portuguese Sentences Lists test PSL, wi th and without the use of hearing aids. The data were analyzed using parametric tests and n onparametric, with p≤0,05. Were obtained positive expectations about the results wi th the use of hearing aids to all individuals in the sample. The restriction of participation was classified as moderate for 14 individuals (87.5%) and below this level for the remaining indi viduals (12.5%). The average of overall benefit obtained was 84%, showing a correlation sta tistically significant and negative, with the results of the assessment expectations. The sub jective evaluation of the benefit, by comparing the results of HHIE/S pre and post-adapta tion, showed satisfactory results for the entire sample. The same was not observed in the obj ective assessment, comparing the PISRQs under the same conditions. It was concluded that: the expectation about the results with the use of hearing aids has been positive for the entire sample, independent of other variables considered. Also, the more positive expec tations presented, smaller were the chances of the individual to report the overall ben efit with the use of hearing aids. Nevertheless, there was some benefit in this regard . Objectively, the benefit was not observed in all individuals evaluated considering t he speech tests, however, subjectively, it was observed throughout the sample. Thus, the expec tations were not influenced by aspects of the process of selection and fitting of hearing aids. Already the influence of expectations on the success of the process occurred only in rela tion to the overall benefit evaluated.