Self-Reported Hearing Difficulties and Hearing Aid Uptake

The purpose of this study is to understand self-reported hearing difficulties and hearing aid uptake with people perceiving hearing difficulties in Korea. The study investigated a total of 788 adults (mean age 67 years) with self-reported hearing difficulties during the eighth survey of Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination. The data included otolaryngology survey, pure tone hearing thresholds, and surveys on quality of life and mental health. People perceiving hearing difficulties showed reduced hearing thresholds. The prevalence of hearing aid uptake was 12.8% of people with self-reported hearing difficulties. People with mild and severe hearing difficulties showed 4.8% and 35.5% of prevalence in hearing aid uptake, respectively. The uptake of hearing aids in Korea was found to be very low. Subjective self-evaluation of hearing difficulties can be used as an indexing tool of hearing loss.