View in EDS PDF Full Text

Time Matters: Possible Predictors of the Number of Appointments During the First Year After Hearing Aid Fitting.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Time Matters: Possible Predictors of the Number of Appointments During the First Year After Hearing Aid Fitting.
Authors: McCabe, Shannon C.1, Ramirez, Kaitlyn1, Dyer, Sara1, Velenovsky, David1, Muller, Tom1, Kobel, Megan J.1 mkobel@arizona.edu
Source: American Journal of Audiology. Jun2026, Vol. 35 Issue 2, p771-778. 8p.
Subject Terms: *Data analysis, *Retrospective studies, *Clinics, Hearing aid fitting, Medical care use, Research funding, Medical technology, T-test (Statistics), Rehabilitation, Hearing aids, Health insurance, Descriptive statistics, Age distribution, Chi-squared test, Presbycusis, Medical appointments, Medical records, Acquisition of data, One-way analysis of variance, Statistics, Data analysis software, Confidence intervals, Hard of hearing people, Patient aftercare, Time, Medical care costs, Regression analysis
Geographic Terms: Arizona
Abstract: Purpose: Follow-up care after hearing aid fitting is recommended, yet clinicians lack data on the expected number of follow-up appointments needed and which patients require more support. This study aimed to characterize follow-up service utilization during the first year after hearing aid fitting and to determine whether patient, device, or cost-related factors may predict the number of follow-up appointments. Method: A retrospective chart review was conducted on 223 adult patients who received hearing aids at a university-affiliated audiology clinic between May 2022 and April 2023. Demographic, audiological, device-specific, and cost-related data were extracted. The number of follow-up appointments over 1 year was used as the primary outcome. Negative binomial regression analyses were performed to identify predictors of follow-up service utilization. Results: Patients attended an average of 4.1 follow-up appointments (range: 1-16), with most attending three to five visits. No significant effects were observed for gender, degree of hearing loss, or language. Effects of age and prior hearing aid experience were identified with older patients and those with over 10 years of prior hearing aid use attending more appointments. Device factors, including dispensing of accessories and dispensing of standard-level technology, were associated with increased follow-up utilization. Patients with higher out-of-pocket (OOP) costs or no insurance coverage attended more appointments, though cost and technology level exhibited interdependencies. Conclusions: Overall, most adult hearing aid patients attended approximately three to five appointments over the first year, and most demographic and audiometric factors did not predict follow-up appointment attendance. However, on average, patients with higher OOP costs and those with an accessory attended more appointments. Clinicians can use these data to provide evidence-based counseling to patients and to inform clinical decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of American Journal of Audiology is the property of American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
Description
Abstract:Purpose: Follow-up care after hearing aid fitting is recommended, yet clinicians lack data on the expected number of follow-up appointments needed and which patients require more support. This study aimed to characterize follow-up service utilization during the first year after hearing aid fitting and to determine whether patient, device, or cost-related factors may predict the number of follow-up appointments. Method: A retrospective chart review was conducted on 223 adult patients who received hearing aids at a university-affiliated audiology clinic between May 2022 and April 2023. Demographic, audiological, device-specific, and cost-related data were extracted. The number of follow-up appointments over 1 year was used as the primary outcome. Negative binomial regression analyses were performed to identify predictors of follow-up service utilization. Results: Patients attended an average of 4.1 follow-up appointments (range: 1-16), with most attending three to five visits. No significant effects were observed for gender, degree of hearing loss, or language. Effects of age and prior hearing aid experience were identified with older patients and those with over 10 years of prior hearing aid use attending more appointments. Device factors, including dispensing of accessories and dispensing of standard-level technology, were associated with increased follow-up utilization. Patients with higher out-of-pocket (OOP) costs or no insurance coverage attended more appointments, though cost and technology level exhibited interdependencies. Conclusions: Overall, most adult hearing aid patients attended approximately three to five appointments over the first year, and most demographic and audiometric factors did not predict follow-up appointment attendance. However, on average, patients with higher OOP costs and those with an accessory attended more appointments. Clinicians can use these data to provide evidence-based counseling to patients and to inform clinical decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:10590889
DOI:10.1044/2026_AJA-25-00240