To assess the self-perception of health and disability of individuals with bilateral hearing loss (HL) before and after one year of using hearing aids, using the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0).
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
Audiologists should consider WHODAS 2.0 as a longitudinal outcome measure alongside audiometric testing to capture the functional and disability impact of hearing aid fitting over time.
Longitudinal functional disability data strengthens the evidence base for hearing aid benefit beyond audiometric gains, supporting advocacy for broader access and reimbursement.
- 01WHODAS 2.0 was used to track self-reported disability in adults with bilateral hearing loss before and after 12 months of hearing aid use.
- 02Study is longitudinal, allowing within-subject comparison of functional outcomes over time.
- 03Findings contribute evidence on the real-world daily-life benefit of hearing aid rehabilitation.
- 04WHODAS 2.0 aligns with the WHO International Classification of Functioning (ICF) framework.
- 05Results may support policy arguments for hearing aid access and funding.
Hearing aid use over one year improves self-perceived health and disability scores on WHODAS 2.0 in individuals with bilateral hearing loss.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42561300
- DOI
- 10.1590/2317-1782/e20250297pt.
- Journal
- CoDAS
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 2b
- Population
- Individuals with bilateral hearing loss
- Intervention
- Hearing aid fitting and use over 12 months
- Comparator
- Baseline (pre-fitting) WHODAS 2.0 scores
Primary outcomes
Self-perceived health status (WHODAS 2.0); Functional disability scores before and after hearing aid use