Clinical Investigation and Validation of a Self-fitted Air-conduction Hearing Aid

NCT06167161 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: PROT-001
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 21
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 2

Brief Summary

Approximately 48 million people in the United States have hearing loss or hearing difficulties in noisy environments. Concha Inc. is working on introducing a wireless air-conduction hearing aid to the market, featuring a self-fitting feature. Self-fitting hearing aids have emerged in recent years as a potentially viable option towards addressing unmet hearing health care needs for millions of individuals who suffer from mild-to-moderate hearing loss. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficiency and reliability of the self-fitting strategy developed by Concha Inc.

Conditions

Hearing Loss

Keywords

air-conduction hearing aid; over-the-counter; self-fitting

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• QuickSIN

  A standardized measure of speech communication in noise, Quick Speech-in-Noise. (QuickSIN). Scores are clinically reported as SNR loss, the difference (in dB) between a listener's performance and that of normal-hearing adult controls. The SNR loss score is an indication of an individual's overall degree of difficulty understanding speech in noise. The greater the SNR loss the poorer the listener's ability is to hear in noise. The QuickSIN test manual provides adjective descriptors corresponding to the SNR loss score where an SNR loss score of 0 to 2 dB is normal, 2 to 7 dB is mild, 7 to 15 dB is moderate, and greater than 15 dB is defined as severe.

  15 days

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• APHAB

  15 days

Study Arms (2)

Screening, intake and first fit (either clinician-fitting or self-fitting )

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

This clinical trial compares two methods of fitting individuals who suffer from hearing loss with a hearing aid device. Subjects will wear the hearing aid after receiving the clinician-fitting (device fitted by a clinician according to standard clinical best practice procedures) and self-fitting (device fitted by the user directly without assistance from a clinician following an automated assessment and fitting process) for two weeks each, totaling to approximately 1 month of wear throughout the trial. During the first visit, all individuals will go through intake procedures and a basic audiologic evaluation. After this is completed, individuals will be randomly assigned into one of two arms of the study. Individuals in the first visit of the study, will receive either the clinician-fitting or the self-fitting method for the first two weeks, then will switch to the experimental self-fitting or the clinician-fitting method for the last half. The order of the fitting will be randomized.

Device: Hearing aid

Second fit (either clinician-fitting or self-fitting )

SHAM COMPARATOR

In the second visit of the study, individuals who randomly received the conventional clinician-fitting for the first two weeks (first period) will switch to the experimental self-fitting for the remainder of the study (second period). Conversely, individuals who received the experimental self-fitting method for the first two weeks (first period) will switch to the clinician-fitting method for the last two weeks (second period). The same within-subject crossover design will be followed in both clinical sites and for all individuals who were enrolled in the study.

Device: Hearing aid

Interventions

Hearing aid DEVICE

The hearing aid is a receiver-in-canal style hearing aid which can be programmed and adjusted by proprietary software and through a dedicated smartphone application

Screening, intake and first fit (either clinician-fitting or self-fitting ); Second fit (either clinician-fitting or self-fitting )

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 80 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Adults, 18 years of age or older
• Apple iPhone X or newer (iOS 14 compatible or greater)
• Mix of male and female subjects
• Willing and able to perform all tests required for the study
• Signed and dated informed consent before the start of any study specific procedure
• Able to read and comprehend English
• Mild-to-moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (defined according to thresholds from 250-8000 Hz with at least one threshold greater than 20 dB HL and thresholds at 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000 Hz less than or equal to 55, 65, 70, and 80 dB HL, respectively)

You may not qualify if:

• Hearing outside of limits noted, above
• Visible deformities of the ear since birth or from injury
• Fluid, pus, or blood coming out of the ear within the previous six months
• Sudden, quickly worsening, or fluctuating hearing loss within the previous six months
• Dizziness or periodic vertigo associated with hearing loss
• Hearing loss in only one ear or a large difference in hearing between ears
• Ear wax build up or feeling that something is in the ear canal
• Pain or discomfort in the ear
• Inability to follow the procedures of the study due to language problems, or other cognitive problems
• Any other history of chronic middle and outer ear disease

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Concha Inc.: lead
• University of Minnesota: collaborator
• San Jose State University: collaborator

Study Sites (2)

San Jose State University

San Jose, California, 95192, United States

Location

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55455, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hearing Loss

Interventions

Hearing Aids

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Hearing Disorders; Ear Diseases; Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases; Sensation Disorders; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Wearable Electronic Devices; Electrical Equipment and Supplies; Equipment and Supplies; Sensory Aids

Study Officials

• Peggy Nelson, PhD

  University of Minnesota

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

• Anusha Yellamsetty, PhD

  San Jose State University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: INDUSTRY
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: This investigation will incorporate a within-subject, randomized, crossover study design in which all study participants will complete two different study arm conditions. During the first visit, subjects will be randomly allocated to study arm A (clinician-fitting) or study arm B (self-fitting). Following the initial two-week take-home field trial, the research participants will be assigned to the opposite study arm such that a complete two-sequence crossover design (AB/BA design) will be followed. The same within-subject crossover design will be followed in both clinical sites and for all individuals who will be enrolled in the study.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 4, 2023
• First Posted: December 12, 2023
• Study Start: January 30, 2023
• Primary Completion: May 30, 2023
• Study Completion: May 30, 2023
• Last Updated: December 18, 2023

Record last verified: 2023-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (2)