Auditory handicap: Analysis of socio-demographic and clinical aspects

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the restriction on auditory participation according to sociodemographic, clinical and assistance factors of adults and elderly people treated in an Audiology Clinic and in the Hearing Health Service of a teaching hospital. Methods: This is an observational analytic cross-sectional study with a probabilistic sample composed of 152 individuals. The questionnaires of the Brazilian Economic Classification Criteria (CCEB), User Characterization, Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults (HHIA), and Hearing and Handicap Inventory for Elderly (HHIE) were applied in adults aged over 18 years and elderly people of both genders. To analyze the data, the following response variables were considered: restriction on auditory participation, adult and elderly, which was studied as follows: general score, social dimension and emotional dimension and the degree of restriction on auditory participation (absence, mild, moderate and significant). Results: Associations with statistical significance were observed between female gender and perception of the restriction on auditory participation, between socioeconomic class and degree of perception of the restriction on auditory participation and between degree of hearing loss and degree of restriction on auditory participation. Conclusion: The data found in the study reinforce the importance of the use of these instruments, being effective in the evaluation of self-perception of restriction on auditory participation and an additional source of information for the therapist, also assisting in the intervention.