CROSSSD Study: Development of a core outcome set for single-sided deafness (SSD) interventions

What is the study about and why is it important?

Single-sided deafness (SSD) refers to the condition where there is normal or near-normal hearing in one ear and a severe-to-profound hearing impairment in the other ear.

Good hearing in both ears is important for everyday listening tasks such as understanding speech in noisy environments, locating where sounds are, and identifying threats such as oncoming traffic.

Researchers have been assessing the benefits and harms (known as ‘outcomes’) of the available treatments for SSD inconsistently. Examples of outcomes that have been used include, how well an individual can hear speech above noise, how easily they can locate a sound, or how a device affects their quality of life. This makes it difficult to compare results between studies, making it harder to work out which treatment is best for the individual.

By involving healthcare users with experience in SSD treatments, audiologists, ENT surgeons, clinical researchers, and industry representatives; the CROSSSD study gathered international opinions via Delphi surveys and a web-based consensus meeting and found agreement on three measures that should always be reported on in SSD intervention studies. The core outcomes are (1) Spatial orientation, (2) Group conversations in noisy social situations, and (3) Impact on social situations.

If all future SSD intervention studies measure these core outcomes as a minimum, we can more easily compare results of different studies, improve research quality, and enhance clinical decision-making.

Further research is currently underway to help determine ‘how’ these core outcomes should best be measured.

Study update video