Background
Improvement of speech perception in quiet is an important goal of hearing aid provision. In practice, results are highly variable. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between type and extent of hearing loss (audiogram type), maximum word recognition score, and aided speech perception.
Materials and methods
Pure tone and speech audiometric data of 740 ears in 370 patients were reviewed. All subjects visited our hearing center for hearing aid evaluation between 2012 and 2017. The maximum word recognition score (WRS
max
) and the monosyllabic speech recognition score with hearing aids, WRS
65
(HA) were analyzed for 10 different standard audiogram types.
Results
The WRS
65
(HA) with hearing aids for different degrees of hearing loss is, within error boundaries, comparable to previous investigations and shows a difference of 10–20 percentage points to the WRS
max
. This difference tends to be larger for flat and moderately sloping audiograms compared to steep-sloping audiograms. The ratio WRS
65
(HA)/WRS
max
can be interpreted as an efficiency factor for hearing aid provision, since it relates speech recognition with hearing aids to the maximally achievable information carrying capacity of the hearing impaired.
Conclusion
The expectation regarding hearing aid provision has to be adjusted according to maximum word recognition score, the derived quality measures, degree of hearing loss, and audiogram type.