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Prescription of binaural hearing aids in the United Kingdom: a knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 March 2006

Sunil N. Dutt ,
Ann-Louise McDermott ,
Richard M. Irving ,
Ivor Donaldson ,
Ahmes L. Pahor  and
David W. Proops
Sunil N. Dutt
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
Ann-Louise McDermott
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
Richard M. Irving
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
Ivor Donaldson
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
Ahmes L. Pahor
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
David W. Proops
Affiliation:
The Birmingham Otology Group, Departments of Otology, The Queen Elizabeth, Selly Oak, Birmingham Children’s and City Hospitals, Birmingham, UK.
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Abstract

The purpose of this questionnaire study was to evaluate the existing knowledge of binaural hearing and the attitudes and practices of prescribing bilateral hearing aids amongst otolaryngologists in the United Kingdom. Of the 950 questionnaires sent to the current members of the British Association of Otolaryngologists and Head and Neck Surgeons (BAO-HNS), there were 591 respondents (62 per cent). The true response rate with completed questionnaires was 59 per cent. Eighty-one per cent of the respondents were aware of the importance of binaural hearing and had a positive attitude towards binaural fitting. The practice of bilateral hearing aid prescriptions was found to be poor amongst all grades on the NHS (less than 10 per cent of all hearing aid prescriptions). This practice in the private sector was variable, dependent largely on patient preference and affordability. The practice of binaural prescription was higher for patients in the paediatric age group than amongst adults. Two common indications for hearing aid prescriptions for unilateral deafness were otitis media with effusion in children (23 per cent of respondents) and for tinnitus masking in adults (12 per cent of respondents). Many otolaryngologists believed that there was not enough evidence to support bilateral bone-anchored hearing aid implantation and bilateral cochlear implantation. Ninety-four per cent of the respondents believed that binaural hearing was as important as binocular vision.

Keywords

Hearing AidsRehabilitation of Hearing ImpairedQuestionnaires
Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 116 , Supplement S28 , June 2002 , pp. 2 - 6
Copyright
© Royal Society of Medicine Press Limited 2002

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