Within this study we have examined the particular hearing complaints of patients being considered for a cochlear implant and the specific benefits/shortcomings experienced by implanted patients using open-ended questionnaires. As we expected, the difficulty of hearing general conversation was the most common individual hearing complaint. However, 45% of complaints were concentrated in the 'psychosocial' category, which was significantly higher than that found among general audiological rehabilitation patients. The average number of benefits listed by patients having implants was significantly higher than that of the shortcomings. Moreover, the main benefits listed were focused on the acoustical and psychological factors, e.g. 'environmental sound awareness', 'general conversation easier' and 'feeling of self-confidence'. The main shortcomings were related to the acoustical and practical areas, e.g. hearing difficulty in noisy background, processor being cumbersome.
The purpose of this study was to analyze the current statuses of hearing aid centers and markets in Korea through surveys and to provide the element understanding about the basic structure of the hearing aid distribution. Methods: A survey was conducted with a questionnaire developed. A total of 30 items in six categories, basic situations of hearing aid center including scale and circumstances, opening motivation and handling brands, sales status, marketing promotion and opinions of the current hearing aid market. 114 responses were acquired and analyzed. Results: Any certificates for evaluation and rehabilitation of hearing aids were held by 74.6% of all participants. Among them, 67.5% have the audiological certificate presented by Audiological Testing Service, which is the main facility of the Korean audiologists who were educated properly. The average selling price of hearing aids was found to be around 1.5 million won. 34.2% of centers sold less than 10 units, while 21.1% sold more than 25 units monthly. 71.7% of the respondents answered that it is necessary to have an officially approved license for hearing aid sales. Also, it was pointed out that overheated price competition among centers was problem. Conclusion: This study broadened the understanding of Korean hearing aid centers and markets and provided the index for developing the hearing aid market-related policies. This kind of research should be carried out continuously to systematize the hearing aid market and resolve the emerging social problems of the people who use hearing aids such as the aged population.
Although there are researches for hearing aid (HA) satisfaction and market trends in USA, MarkeTrak (MT) and Europe, EuroTrak (ET), such could not be found in Korea with increasing demands of HAs. The purpose of this investigation was to establish a systematic base of Korean HA research reviewing MT, which is a good example of HA market trends and satisfaction analysis. Classifying 4 themes, HA features, HA utilities, psycho-social factors, financial factors, MT issues were from 1984 to 2015. The contents included specifically analyzed the main themes, the major considerations for the current HA market, and the factors improving HA satisfaction rates. According to a survey, HA adoption rate has grown by 6.4% in the USA over 30 years while HA satisfaction rate has increased by 21.4%. The reason for the low adoption rate was reported that the primary motivation to purchase HA was the deterioration of hearing of the individual consumer. The increased satisfaction rate was attributed to the advanced technology that resolved the discomfort factors such as background noise and cosmetic concerning. In addition, the distributing agency of HAs was changed from general dispensers to the audiologists who were professionally educated. MT has put a great impact on investigating HA market in the USA. As Korean HA markets are increasing, it is necessary for the development of KoreaTrak (as the assumed name) such as MT or ET.
Purpose: The aim of this study was to survey the satisfaction of hearing aid users in Korea. The questionnaire was designed to find out not only the satisfaction of wearing hearing aid but also the various viewpoints about the hearing aid itself of its wearers.Methods: A total of 118 subjects including 72 males and 46 females completed the survey from 28 hearing aids centers. The questionnaire was divided into two parts. The first part contained the audiological information reported by the experts and the other part included about the information of hearing aid performance, listening environments and related services reported by the hearing aid users.Results: Overall satisfaction rate of hearing aid was 64.4%. About 84% of the subjects answered that the hearing aid made their quality of life improved. The most satisfied function of the hearing aid was ‘overall comfort,’ the most satisfied sound quality was ‘improved hearing ability,’ the most satisfied listening environments was ‘one-to-one conversation,’ and the most satisfied service quality was ‘kindness of the staffs.’ The most important listening situation they thought was ‘communication with cell phone.’ The proportion of using customized hearing aid was 77.9%, bilateral fitting rate was 62.4% and average purchasing price was 1,820,000 won per a unit.Conclusion: The overall hearing aid satisfaction rate (64.4%) was lower than USA (81%) and Germany (76%) but higher than Japan (38%). In Korea, the comprehensive study for the hearing aid market, specific satisfaction viewpoints of the hearing aid wearers and the status of non-wearers who have hearing loss should be needed for improving the user’s hearing aid satisfaction rate in the future.
Directional Microphone Effects on Speech IntelligibilityThe purpose of this study was to identify the effects of directional microphone in view of the speech intelligibility and preference of hearing aids wearers. Especially, this experiment focused on the difference between the omni and adaptive directional modes in noisy situation. Subjects consisted of 10 adults with moderately-severe sensorineural hearing loss in both ears. All subjects were bilaterally fitted with behind-the-ear hearing aids. The Korean speech perception in noise KSPIN tests were performed for two directional modes at each SNR of 0 dB and 5 dB to measure the speech intelligibility. The babble noise was placed in the back of patients 180℃ and the signal source was placed in front of patients 0℃ . Results showed that the speech intelligibility with the adaptive mode was higher than that with the omni mode in both 0 dB and 5 dB SNR conditions. The difference was greater at the condition of 5 dB SNR and the adaptive mode improved about 5 dB SNR in noisy situation when the noise was placed at the azymuth of 180℃, Most subjects also preferred the adaptive mode to the omni mode. It is suggested that the adaptive directional microphone can improve the speech intelligibility in noisy situation. These information may be utilized with caution when counseling the hearing aid selection. KEY WORDS:
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