In addition you have to remember Ed that a hearing loss and its effects are subjective. The zero line on an audiogram is an average taken of ‘normal’ adult hearing. It is not like an objective scale like dB SPL et al. If this particular person had -15dBHL hearing at one time, his +20dB loss may be a huge shift for him personally. Just because on paper his loss seems insignificant doesn’t mean that it is, or that you should pour scorn on him for looking for answers.
In my career I’ve met people with a 20dB loss who think the world is ending, and I’ve met people with a 50dB loss who swear blind that their hearing is nearly normal and they hear ‘what they want to hear.’ So maybe it would be nice for you not to attack people with a hearing loss and hearing professionals answering their questions.
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ZCT,
That is very good explanation. It all depends on your reference. If you start with someone the has hearing at +20, you add a loss of -50, you come out with a net loss of -30 from absolute normal. That is still a -50 loss from what he is used to. A 50db difference is quite noticeable.
Thank you for your input.