Conclusion
AIDS
In an environment where OTC devices, including PSAPs, are becoming more widespread and readily available, our results are important for three reasons. First, we showed that PSAPs can help people with different hearing profiles, particularly those with higher hearing thresholds, to improve their listening ability compared with an unaided situation. Second, we demonstrated that adaptation to the devices is rapid and that benefits are apparent only after a few hours of use. Longer use is likely to yield greater benefits. Finally, we observed that not all users initially experience the same level of benefit, which varies with age, hearing status, and cognition. This reveals the importance of considering demographic and health factors to fully understand the benefits of hearing amplification. Previous studies have not included demographic and health factors in the analyses. Therefore, this may explain why some studies have favoured PSAPs over conventional hearing aids, and others have favoured conventional hearing aids over PSAPs. However, it needs to be clarified whether these factors only contribute to rapid acclimation to the device or whether they also indicate which users will experience long-term benefits.