By: Matthew Randal, BS, Graduate Student Representative

In August of this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published their final decisions concerning over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids. While OTC hearing aid options have been available for several years, this announcement has again brought affordable amplification to the top of many minds nationwide.

Let’s take a moment to talk about what separates consumer electronics from hearing healthcare. I think the best possible outcome from this ruling is that hearing aids move away from the ageist stigma that stops many people from taking timely care of their ears and the brain in between them.

What might consumers get from an OTC hearing aid? There’s the potential to get a fashion-forward device that one’s peers will assume is nothing more than Apple AirPods or Samsung Galaxy Buds. One will definitely get a device capable of amplifying external sounds at the ear-level, likely even somewhat tuned to their hearing configuration. However, the foreseeable benefits exclude responsible investigation into the root of a hearing loss. Such devices also generally do not include the warranty and other support that is inherent with seeing an audiologist. More simply put, the expectation is that the hearing aid’s settings will be adjusted with the user as the brain learns (or re-learns) the significance of novel sound input. Who will make these fine changes when necessary and/or evaluate the efficacy of the device? Consumers might be out of luck if they need anything more than what comes in the box with the OTC hearing aid.

However, do all patients need these potential benefits? No, they don’t. Some will be perfectly safe and happy with a mild to moderate level of amplification that is lightly programmable through their phone. But for those with a sinister reason behind their hearing loss (such as a tumor or virus), the OTC hearing aid may indeed improve conversational speech outcomes while the situation has the potential to get much worse and potentially life-threatening. This, unfortunately, will be the price some unwary consumers may pay as the window for medical intervention will close and outcomes will be grim. And let’s not forget that interventions for children require timeliness, verification, and loads of patient and family support to even approach proper age-related milestones.

It may be helpful as a profession to adjust our thinking to transition back to the potential good these consumer electronic devices can provide. It might start the hearing healthcare conversation sooner for some families as a same-day purchase can be made to explore basic amplification. It might be all the power someone needs to be satisfied with their audibility for one or both ears. It might even be that we see a faster merge between health wearables and the acceptance of hearing aids in mainstream culture. It’s long been known that hearing loss, much like vision problems, is not at all exclusive to those in their later years. However, the hearing aid market doesn’t have many style choices like the infinite options available for eyeglass wearers. I would be delighted if within this decade we could reach a new normal in which hearing health is no longer stigmatized and patients are rightfully praised for rocking new hearing aids. We might just need the help of these OTC brands and tech giants to make it happen.