Satisfaction and speech perception were frequent secondary outcomes .
There was diversity in measures used to report patient outcomes .
Outcome categories other than patient health status and behavior were rarely reported .
This review has highlighted considerable diversity in patient-reported outcome measurements in r and omized control trials in the context of adult auditory rehabilitation .
OBJECTIVES This review documented the range and nature of reported outcome measures in the context of adult auditory rehabilitative research .
Expectations, prefitting counseling, and hearing aid outcome.
BACKGROUND Data suggest that having high expectations about hearing aids results in better overall outcome . However , some have postulated that excessively high expectations will result in disappointment and thus poor outcome . It has been suggested that counseling patients with unrealistic expectations about hearing aids prior to fitting may be beneficial . Data , however , are mixed as to the effectiveness of such counseling , in terms of both changes in expectations and final outcome . PURPOSE The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether supplementing prefitting counseling with demonstration of real-world listening can ( 1 ) alter expectations of new hearing aid users and ( 2 ) increase satisfaction over verbal-only counseling . Secondary goals of the study were to examine ( 1 ) the relationship between prefitting expectations and postfitting outcome , and ( 2 ) the effect of hearing aid fine-tuning on hearing aid outcome . RESEARCH DESIGN Sixty new hearing aid users were fitted binaurally with Beltone Oria behind-the-ear digital hearing aids .  Forty participants received prefitting counseling and demonstration of listening situations with the Beltone AVE ( Audio Verification Environment ) system ;  20 received prefitting counseling without a demonstration of listening situations . Hearing aid expectations were measured at initial contact and following prefitting counseling . Reported hearing aid outcome was measured after eight to ten weeks of hearing aid use . STUDY SAMPLE Sixty new hearing aid users aged between 55 and 81 years with symmetrical sensorineural hearing loss . INTERVENTION Participants were r and omly assigned to one of three experimental groups , between which the prefitting counseling and follow-up differed : Group 1 received prefitting counseling in combination with demonstration of listening situations . Additionally , if the participant had complaints about sound quality at the follow-up visit , the hearing aids were fine-tuned using the Beltone AVE system . Group 2 received prefitting counseling in combination with demonstration of listening situations with the Beltone AVE system , but no fine-tuning was provided at follow-up . Group 3 received prefitting hearing aid counseling that did not include demonstration of listening , and the hearing aids were not fine-tuned at the follow-up appointment . RESULTS The results showed that prefitting hearing aid counseling had small but significant effects on expectations . The two forms of counseling did not differ in their effectiveness at changing expectations ; however , anecdotally , we learned from many participants that that they enjoyed listening to the auditory demonstrations and that they found them to be an interesting listening exercise . The data also show that positive expectations result in more positive outcome and that hearing aid fine-tuning is beneficial to the user . CONCLUSIONS We conclude that prefitting counseling can be advantageous to hearing aid outcome and recommend the addition of prefitting counseling to address expectations associated with quality of life and self-image . The data emphasize the need to address unrealistic expectations prior to fitting hearing aids cautiously , so as not to decrease expectations to the extent of discouraging and demotivating the patient . Data also show that positive expectations regarding the impact hearing aids will have on psychosocial well-being are important for successful hearing aid outcome
Satisfaction and speech perception were frequent secondary outcomes .
There was diversity in measures used to report patient outcomes .
Outcome categories other than patient health status and behavior were rarely reported .
This review has highlighted considerable diversity in patient-reported outcome measurements in r and omized control trials in the context of adult auditory rehabilitation .
OBJECTIVES This review documented the range and nature of reported outcome measures in the context of adult auditory rehabilitative research .