# Hearing Aid Effects on Brain and Behavior

> **NIH VA I01** · PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · —

## Abstract

Hearing loss and tinnitus are the two most common service-related disabilities among
Veterans. These two conditions, together with the progressive effects associated with aging,
present an important challenge for effective Veteran care. Furthermore, treatment of tinnitus and
hearing loss has been shown to improve quality of life. Auditory rehabilitation for hearing loss
commonly includes hearing aids as a means to improve audibility and allow access to important
cues for accurate speech perception, which, in turn, promotes successful communication and
engagement in psychosocial aspects of life. Hearing aids have also been found to reduce the
bothersome ratings of those with tinnitus; in fact, some clinicians routinely fit hearing aids as a
primary means of tinnitus treatment, in some cases even when hearing thresholds are within the
normal range.
 In addition to the immediate audibility changes and treatment qualities related to
acoustic modification made by the hearing aid, amplification also has the potential to affect
higher level auditory processing abilities, such as speech perception in noise, cognition or other
abilities required for complex listening tasks the effects (e.g., effort). Long-term effects of
amplification, also known as acclimatization effects, are not well understood relative to more
immediate audibility-related effects. A better understanding of the long-term acclimatization
effects, together with more immediate audibility effects, will help audiologist to improve hearing
aid success and benefit among Veterans.
 An approach using psychophysical, physiological, cognitive, and questionnaire outcome
measures of both immediate audibility and long-term acclimatization effects that are associated
with hearing aid use may help to clarify the positive impacts of amplification as a rehabilitation
approach. The purpose of this study is to examine the way in which immediate audibility effects
and long-term auditory processing effects of amplification affect a range of outcome measures.
Improved measurement of the changes that occur with amplification will then help to understand
and improve rehabilitation success.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10710378
- **Project number:** 5I01RX003702-03
- **Recipient organization:** PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Curtis J Billings
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-10-01 → 2026-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10710378

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10710378, Hearing Aid Effects on Brain and Behavior (5I01RX003702-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10710378. Licensed CC0.

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