Direct hearing aid provision by ENT specialists: Recommendations for prevention and treatment of complications after taking ear impressions

摘要

In times of budgeting, rising costs and monetary losses, an increasing number of ENT specialists considers the hearing system sector due to the distinct undersupply and the expected demographic development to be a market of the future and appropriate to enlarge their field of competence. Exact prevalence of direct hearing aid provision by German otorhinolaryngologists as well as its complication rate are not well-known. Retrospectively, all patients were evaluated who presented at our department with complications in the context of outpatient direct hearing aid supply within the last 3 years. Inappropriate fitting contains the danger of malformed or displaced ear impressions with various injury patterns comprising the external auditory canal, tympanic membrane and ossicular chain. Practical advices for prevention of complications include the accurate modeling and placement of sufficient impression pads behind the second bend of the auditory canal, using an adequate type of impression material as well as performing the correct application procedures. Recommendations for diagnostic patterns and treatment of complications after taking ear impressions are presented, the differences between German "traditional" and "direct" hearing aid provision are critically discussed.