Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-r5fsc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T19:04:25.841Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A prospective evaluation of direct referral to audiology departments for hearing aids

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2007

I. R. C. Swan  and
G. G. Browning
I. R. C. Swan*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology, University of Glasgow, Royal Infirmary, Glasgow G31 2ER.
G. G. Browning
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology, University of Glasgow, Royal Infirmary, Glasgow G31 2ER.
*
Mr I. R. C. Swan, Department of Otolaryngology, University of Glasgow, Royal Infirmary, Glasgow G31 2ER.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

It has been suggested that a proportion of individuals with a hearing impairment can be fitted with a hearing aid without being otolaryngologically assessed. Such assessments are deemed advisable: (a) to identify otological pathology that might require management and (b) because surgery can be a viable alternative in those with a conductive impairment.

The aim of this study was to prospectively study individuals referred to an Otolaryngology Department in a teaching hospital to assess how technicians, at a direct referral clinic for the provision of a hearing aid, could screen to identify those meriting an otolaryngological opinion. Two hundred and forty-eight patients were evaluated by technicians using strict audiometric and tympanometric criteria. One hundred and twenty-five patients (50 per cent) failed these criteria and were referred to an otologist. The remaining 123 (50 per cent) were managed by technicians but were subsequently reviewed for the purpose of this study by an otologist and their management assessed. In only two patients (one per cent) was it thought that the initial management would have been different if seen by an otologist. Alternative criteria for deciding suitability for management by technicians were applied. The inclusion of tympanometry was essential to avoid missing middle ear pathology.

Keywords

Hearing aidsAudiology
Type
Main Articles
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 108 , Issue 2 , February 1994 , pp. 120 - 124
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bellini, M. J., Beesley, P., Perrett, C., Pickles, J. M. (1989) Hearing aids: can they be safely prescribed without medical supervision? Clinical Otolaryngology 14: 415–418.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Browning, G. G., Gatehouse, S. (1992) The prevalence of middle ear disease in the adult British Population. Clinical Otolaryngology 17: 317–321.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, J. B., Nigam, A. (1991) Hearing aid prescribing: is the specialist opinion necessary? Clinical Otolaryngology 16: 124–127.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Davies, J. E., John, D. G., Jones, A. H., Stephens, S. D. G. (1988) Tympanometry as a screening test for treatable hearing loss in the elderly. British Journal of Audiology 22: 119–121.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Grover, B. C., Johnson, J. A. (1986) A survey of some procedures employed in the National Health Service to accelerate the provision of hearing aids. RNID Scientific and Technical Department Report.Google Scholar
Harries, M. L. L., Baguley, D. M., Moffat, D. A. (1989) Hearing aids - a case for review. Journal of Laryngology and Otology 103: 850–852.Google Scholar
Hawthorne, M. R., Nunez, D. A., Clarke, G. P., Robertshaw, D. (1991) Direct referral hearing aid provision in the over sixties age group. Journal of Laryngology and Otology 105: 825–827.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Johnson, J. A., Grover, B. C, Martin, M. C. (1984) A survey of National Health Service hearing aid services. RNID Scientific and Technical Department Report.Google Scholar
Prinsley, P., Premachandra, D. J., Madden, G. (1989) Dispensing hearing aids in the community. Lancet ii: 500–501.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Royal National Institute for the Deaf (1988), Hearing Aids. The Case for Change, RNID.Google Scholar
Swan, I. R. C., Gatehouse, S. (1987) Optimum side for fitting a monaural hearing aid. III: A paradox resolved. British Journal of Audiology 21: 205–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Technicians, Therapists and Scientists in Audiology (1992) TTSA Guidelines for Audiology Departments on the Direct Referral of Adults from GP's to Hearing Aid Services. In Sounds like Quality–A Framework for Better Hearing Services to Adults. British Society of Audiology.Google Scholar
Watson, C., Crowther, J. A. (1989) Provision of hearing aids: does specialist assessment cause delay? British Medical Journal 299: 437–439.Google Scholar