# Feasibility and Acceptability of Using Low-Gain Hearing Aids for Bothersome Tinnitus

> **NIH VA I21** · PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER · 2020 · —

## Abstract

Tinnitus – defined as ringing, humming, or other sounds in the ears or head – is the most prevalent service-
connected disability among Veterans. Tinnitus affects 10-15% of the adult population. For about 20% of these,
tinnitus impacts their lives with respect to sleep disturbance, impaired concentration, and/or emotional
reactions. These 20% are the most in need of clinical services. It has been shown that providing amplification
via hearing aids for people with hearing loss can also be beneficial in reducing functional effects of tinnitus,
presumably because amplifying environmental sounds reduces the contrast between the tinnitus and
background sound, allowing the tinnitus to be more easily ignored. There have been increasing reports from
the field of audiologists providing hearing aids set to deliver low-gain amplification on patients with bothersome
tinnitus who are not otherwise hearing aid candidates, with beneficial outcomes. However, this nontraditional
fitting practice has not been formally evaluated, so there is no research evidence to support the practice. It is
essential for VA to show evidence supporting such practices to justify the use (and expense) of these devices
with patients who otherwise do not qualify to receive hearing aids.
The proposed project is a pilot study that would lay the groundwork for a future full randomized controlled trial
(RCT) evaluating the use of low-gain amplification for bothersome tinnitus in patients with normal hearing. A
pilot sample of 20 Veterans with normal hearing thresholds and bothersome tinnitus will be fit with mild
amplification through receiver-in-the-canal hearing aids. Hearing aids will be programmed to provide a low-
level of amplification, using NAL-NL2 guidelines for target gain. Outcome measures will be evaluated pre-fit
and post-fit at two follow-up time points (2 weeks and 3 months post-fit). Outcomes will include the Tinnitus
Functional Index (TFI), Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults (HHIA) and the Quick Speech in Noise
(QuickSIN) test. Outcomes pre and post hearing aid fit will be compared to evaluate whether the hearing aids
provided benefit to participants in terms of their tinnitus and hearing outcomes. Additionally, participants will be
interviewed at their last visit to find out their self-reported benefit from the hearing aids, as well as any barriers
they encountered to wearing the hearing aids.
Additionally, a group of VA clinical audiologists will be interviewed by telephone. These clinicians will be
identified via an email survey sent to the VA audiologist email group, asking whether they are providing low-
gain amplification for bothersome tinnitus to patients with normal hearing. The survey will also ask audiologists
to volunteer if they are willing to participate in a brief telephone interview. The aim will be to identify at least ten
audiologists who are fitting hearing aids in this way, and up to five who are not. These audiologists will be
interviewed over the ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9966784
- **Project number:** 5I21RX003196-02
- **Recipient organization:** PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Tara Lynette Zaugg
- **Activity code:** I21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-07-01 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9966784

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9966784, Feasibility and Acceptability of Using Low-Gain Hearing Aids for Bothersome Tinnitus (5I21RX003196-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9966784. Licensed CC0.

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