Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Aug 1;13(4):573-585.
doi: 10.3390/audiolres13040050.

Influence of Bone Conduction Hearing Device Implantation on Health-Related Quality of Life for Patients with and without Tinnitus

Nasrene Khan  1 , Aaran T Lewis  2
Affiliations

Influence of Bone Conduction Hearing Device Implantation on Health-Related Quality of Life for Patients with and without Tinnitus

Nasrene Khan et al. Audiol Res. .

Abstract

(1) Background: Tinnitus, often related to hearing loss, is an addressable public health concern affecting health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This study aimed to explore the influence of bone conduction hearing aid (BCHA) implantation on HRQoL and hearing disability in patients with hearing loss suffering from tinnitus. (2) Methods: Data were collected from an international hearing implant registry. Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI-3), Spatial and Qualities of Hearing- 49 Questionnaire (SSQ) and self-reported tinnitus burden data for adult patients implanted with a BCHA (n = 42) who provided baseline as well as follow-up data 1-year post-implantation were extracted from the registry. Wilcoxon signed rank tests and paired samples t-tests were used to analyse outcomes data. (3) Results: Patients, with or without tinnitus, demonstrated clinically important mean improvements in HUI-3 multi-attribute utility scores, HUI-3 hearing attribute and SSQ scores. Hearing loss patients with tinnitus presented with a lower HRQoL than patients without tinnitus. (4) Conclusions: These findings demonstrate the importance of hearing rehabilitation in improving the quality of life and hearing disability of patients with or without tinnitus and in providing tinnitus relief in some patients with hearing loss and tinnitus.

Keywords: bone conduction implant; hearing loss; hearing rehabilitation; quality of life; tinnitus; utility gain.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

A.T.L. is a former employee of Cochlear Limited, a manufacturer and supplier of implantable hearing devices.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Patient eligibility and inclusion flow chart at 1-year follow-up.
Figure 2
Figure 2
HUI3 utility scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients with tinnitus. Circles represent outliers.
Figure 3
Figure 3
HUI-3 utility scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients without tinnitus. Circles represent outliers.
Figure 4
Figure 4
HUI-3 hearing attribute scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients with tinnitus. Circles represent outliers.
Figure 5
Figure 5
HUI-3 hearing attribute scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients without tinnitus. Circles represent outliers.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Global SSQ scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients with tinnitus.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Global SSQ scores pre-implantation and at 1-year post-implantation for BCHA patients without tinnitus. Circles and asterisks represent outliers.
Figure 8
Figure 8
A pie chart demonstrating tinnitus perception post-implantation based on the self-reported questionnaire results.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Baguley D., McFerran D., Hall D. Tinnitus. Lancet. 2013;382:1600–1607. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)60142-7. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Trotter M.I., Donaldson I. Hearing aids and tinnitus therapy: A 25-year experience. J. Laryngol. Otol. 2008;122:1052–1056. doi: 10.1017/S002221510800203X. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sanchez T.G., de Medeiros Í.R.T., Levy C.P.D., da Rosa Oiticica Ramalho J., Bento R.F. Tinnitus in normally hearing patients: Clinical aspects and repercussions. Braz. J. Otorhinolaryngol. 2005;71:427–431. doi: 10.1016/S1808-8694(15)31194-0. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Oiticica J., Bittar R.S.M. Tinnitus prevalence in the city of São Paulo. Braz. J. Otorhinolaryngol. 2015;81:167–176. doi: 10.1016/j.bjorl.2014.12.004. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hébert S., Canlon B., Hasson D., Hanson L.L.M., Westerlund H., Theorell T. Tinnitus Severity Is Reduced with Reduction of Depressive Mood—A Prospective Population Study in Sweden. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e37733. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037733. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources

-