Auditory Gain, Quality of Life, and Audiological Benefits in Bone-Anchored Hearing Device Users in Fundación Santafé De Bogotá, Colombia

Abstract

The objective of this study is to determine the auditory gain, quality of life, audiological benefits, in bone-anchored hearing device users (BAHA). It is a retrospective and concurrent evaluation of thirty patients fitted unilaterally and seven fitted bilaterally for at least six months. Patients were assessed with audiometric testing and application of Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) and Abbre-viated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB). Regarding sound-field pure audiometry results, we found a statistically significant gain in all frequencies using the bone-anchored device. APHAB scores showed statistically significant subjective audiological gains in all subscales except for the aversiveness subscale. GBI mean scores for all items in both groups were all above 3, suggesting quality of life improvement in conductive and mixed hearing loss patients. BP100 users showed a greater clinical gain in the APHAB global score and subscales compared with Divino users. In con-clusion the BAHA provides significant auditory gain, subjective audiological benefits and improves quality of life in all BAHA users. This study shows a significant clinical and statistical benefit of BAHA measured by audiometric testing and by the APHAB and GBI questionnaires. A. Peñaranda et al. 45 Keywords BAHA, Quality of Life, Audiological Benefits, Auditory Gain