Objective To evaluate the test-retest reliability and responsiveness of the 15-item and 5-item forms of the Empowerment in Audiology Questionnaire (EmpAQ measures).Design In Study A, participants completed the EmpAQ-15 and the Revised Hearing Handicap Inventory-Screening version (RHHI-S) twice, 3-4 weeks apart. Reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland-Altman plots. In Study B, participants completed the EmpAQ-15 and RHHI-S at baseline (pre-hearing aid fitting) and three and six months post-hearing aid fitting. Responsiveness was assessed using distribution-based, anchor-based, and measurement error-based approaches. We derived EmpAQ-5 from the EmpAQ-15 dataset and analysed it similarly.Study sample Study A, n = 53 adults with hearing difficulties. Study B, n = 51 hearing aid-na & iuml;ve adults with hearing difficulties.Results EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5 demonstrated moderate test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.72 and 0.74 respectively), comparable to the RHHI-S (ICC = 0.77). Following hearing aid fitting, EmpAQ scores increased significantly at 3 months (mean change +9.29 and +10.60; SRM = 0.50 and 0.53). Approximately 21-23% exceeded MDC95 thresholds, indicating individual-level change beyond measurement error. Improvements were maintained at 6 months.Conclusions The EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5 are reliable and responsive measures that capture empowerment changes following hearing aid fitting and complement traditional evaluation tools in contemporary audiological care.
Objective The primary goal of this work was to characterise the effects of early ageing on cochlear and auditory brainstem function. The secondary goal was to explore the possibility of using non-invasive measures to differentiate between cochlear and neural pathology.Design A cross-sectional design was used to measure level growth of distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) and wave I amplitude of the auditory brainstem response (ABR) in adults aged 18-49 years.Study Sample Thirty-three individuals with clinically normal audiometric thresholds (<= 25 dB HL from 0.25-8 kHz) participated across two age groups: 18-29 years (& micro; = 23.9 years) and 30-49 years (& micro; = 37.1 years).Results On average, both DPOAEs and ABR wave I amplitude decline with age when controlling for behavioural threshold. In some individuals, the age-related effects on ABR wave I amplitude are greater than for DPOAEs. Additionally, DPOAE level growth does not predict ABR wave I amplitude.Conclusions Results indicate subclinical cochlear and neural decline in typical early-aged ears, while individual patterns are consistent with cochlear deafferentation in several participants. Additionally, DPOAEs and ABR wave I amplitude may offer unique insights into auditory integrity, suggesting their potential future clinical for differential diagnosis of age-related hearing loss.
