Results of hearing aids use dispensed by a publicly-funded health service

Hearing aid use and satisfaction can be used to analyze the effectiveness of hearing rehabilitation, an issue few explored in Brazilian users. OBJECTIVE: Evaluate hearing aid use dispensed in a publicly-funded health service after one year, the interventions needed and users' satisfaction. METHOD: Prospective observational cross-sectional study. Hearing aid users were invited by telephone to participate in an evaluation of hearing aid use. RESULTS: 200 hearing aid users attended the evaluation (47% of sample loss); 76.5% of the subjects were using hearing aids bilaterally, 10.5% unilaterally and 13.0% none of them; 99.5% of users needed some kind of intervention. Users who kept wearing their hearing aids were considered “satisfied”. CONCLUSION: Active search by telephone showed that hearing aid users who attend this publicly-funded health service have difficulties to attend follow-up appointments. Most of the users that came for evaluation kept using their hearing aids; non-use rate was 13%. Practically all hearing aid users needed some kind of intervention. Despite the high level of satisfaction, those findings did not include users who did not participate in evaluation, which could represent subjects less adhered to the treatment. Results highlighted the need of periodical follow-ups to ensure the effectiveness of auditory rehabilitation.