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Abstract
The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of an individual pre-fitting intervention for first-time hearing aid users. Thirty-eight hearing impaired adults were randomly assigned to a sound awareness pre-fitting intervention (n=19) or to a control group (n=19). The purpose of the sound awareness training was to facilitate the users’ acclimatization to amplified sound. The pre-fitting intervention consisted of three visits and was followed by conventional hearing aid fitting that was identical for both groups. Standardized questionnaires were administered before and after the pre-fitting intervention, after the conventional hearing aid fitting, and at a one-year follow-up. The follow-up also included a clinical assessment by means of a telephone interview performed by an independent audiologist. The pre-intervention did not result in any major improvement over and above the control group. However, improvements were found for both groups following hearing aid fitting. In addition, most participants were considered as successful users in the interview. Future research should target individuals in need of extended hearing aid rehabilitation.