Accepted for/Published in: JMIR mHealth and uHealth
Date Submitted: Jun 27, 2023
Date Accepted: Dec 11, 2023
Date Submitted to PubMed: Jun 3, 2024
Hearing Rehabilitation with a Chat-based Mobile Auditory Training Program in Experienced Hearing Aids Users: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Study
ABSTRACT
Background:
Hearing rehabilitation with auditory training (AT) is necessary to improve speech perception ability in patients with hearing loss. However, face-to-face AT has not been widely implemented due to its high cost and manpower requirements. Therefore, there is a need for the development of a patient-friendly mobile-based AT program.
Objective:
In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of hearing rehabilitation with our novel chatbot-delivered mobile AT (CMAT) program on speech perception performance of experienced hearing aid (HA) users.
Methods:
A total of 42 adult hearing loss patients who had worn bilateral hearing aids for more than 3 months were enrolled and randomly allocated to the AT or control group. In the AT group, CMAT was performed for 30 minutes a day for 2 months, and no intervention was provided in the control group. During the study, two patients from the AT group and one patient from the control group dropped out. At 0-, 1- and 2-month visits, results of hearing tests, speech perception tests, compliance and questionnaires were prospectively collected and analyzed between the two groups.
Results:
The AT group (n=19) showed better improvement in word and sentence perception tests compared to control group (n=20, P < .05) and no significant difference was observed in phoneme and consonant perception tests. All participants were able to use CMAT without any difficulties and 85 % (17/20) of the AT group completed required training session. Also, there were no changes in time and completion rate between the first and the second month of AT. However, no significant difference was observed between the two groups in questionnaire surveys.
Conclusions:
After using the CMAT program, word and sentence perception performance were significantly improved in experienced hearing aid users. In addition, CMAT showed high compliance and adherence over the two-month study period. Further investigations are needed to validate long-term efficacy in a larger population. Clinical Trial: cris.nih.go.kr; KCT0006509
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