Hearing difficulty and hearing aid use
Published November 2025
Dillard et al.
Hearing loss affects many adults, but people experience its impact differently. This study looked at Wisconsin residents who said they had hearing loss and explored two things: what factors are linked to how much difficulty people feel they have hearing, and whether people who report more difficulty are more likely to use hearing aids. To measure perceived difficulty, researchers used a short questionnaire called the Revised Hearing Handicap Inventory–Screening version (RHHI-S).
The study included 137 adults, most in their 60s, with a mix of demographic backgrounds. Several factors were linked to reporting more hearing difficulty. These included having tinnitus (ringing in the ears), past dizziness or balance problems, exposure to loud noise at work, and noticing hearing issues at a younger age. Education level and marital status were also related—people younger than 65 with a high school education or less, and people who had never married, tended to report more difficulty. Among adults 65 and older, men reported more difficulty than women.
Only about one in four participants used hearing aids. However, the study found a strong connection between how much difficulty people reported and whether they used hearing aids. For every small increase in the RHHI-S score, the odds of using hearing aids rose significantly. These findings suggest that simple self-report tools like the RHHI-S could help identify people who may benefit from hearing healthcare or hearing aids, especially in clinical or community settings.