助听器远程调试系统在中老年听障患者中的应用效果分析

Application of Hearing Aids’Remote Support System among Elderly People with Hearing Impairment

目的比较助听器远程调试和传统面对面调试对中老年听障患者使用助听器效果的影响。方法对20例中老年听障患者采用面对面方式验配助听器,并使用汉语普通话噪声下言语测试(Mandarin hearing in noise test,MHINT)获得助听前后言语识别阈值,评估效果。1周后,20例患者面对面填写中国助听器效果问卷调查(Chinese hearing aid outcomes questionnaires-CHAOQ),然后随机分为传统组和远程组,每组10例,传统组面对面进行后续助听器调试,远程组使用手机软件通过线上方式进行远程调试;调试后3周,两组再次面对面填写问卷,并完成言语识别阈测试,比较两组结果。结果两组患者助听前言语识别阈无统计学差异,佩戴助听器1周后及调试3周后两组患者的言语识别阈均降低,但调试方式对两组患者言语识别阈值的影响不显著[F(1,18)=0.15,P=0.70];助听器效果问卷调查显示,两组患者对助听器使用的满意度差异无统计学意义[F(1,18)=0.04,P=0.84]。远程组患者调试前不满意率为20%,调试3周后降为10%;传统组患者对助听器的不满意率调试前后均为20%。结论对于中老年听障患者,配戴助听器后远程调试助听器的效果与传统面对面调试相同,并且具有快捷方便实时的优点。

Objective To compare effects of different tuning methods(remote vs.face-to-face)of hearing aids on hearing aid performance for elderly people with hearing impairment.Methods Twenty elderly subjects with hearing impairment were recruited.The first-fit visits of hearing aids were completed face to face in CRRCHSI.Unaided and aided sentence reception thresholds(SRTs)were measured with Mandarin Hearing in Noise Test(MHINT).One week later,twenty subjects came back to finish Chinese Hearing Aid Outcomes Questionnaires(CHAOQ),and then were randomly assigned into two groups for face-to-face fine-tuning service(traditional group)and remote fine-tuning(remote group)respectively.Three weeks later,subjects in both groups were invited back to complete the same CHAOQ and MHINT.By comparing the changes of performance of two groups,we explored the potential benefits of remote support for hearing aid users.Results Significant improvements on speech reception thresholds were seen in both groups after fine-tuning,but tuning methods(remote vs.face-to-face)showed no significant effects on subjects’performance,either on the speech recognition tests[F(1,18)=0.97,P=0.34]or the questionnaire evaluations[F(1,18)=0.04,P=0.84],across two groups.According to the questionnaire results,in the remote group,the number of participants who were dissatisfied with the hearing aids had decreased from 20%to 10%after remote fine-tuning;this number kept at 20%across two surveys for the traditional group.Conclusion Remote support,featuring the advantages of being convenient and real-time,produces outcomes as good as that of the traditional face-to-face tuning.