Remote Hearing Care: Innovation, Outcomes and Implementation in Teleaudiology and Teleotology

Hearing and ear disorders affect more than 1.5 billion people worldwide and are among the leading causes of disability. At the same time, many regions continue to face shortages of audiologists, otologists, and specialist hearing services, resulting in substantial inequalities in access to timely diagnosis and care. Against this backdrop, hearing and ear care is being transformed by teleaudiology and teleotology, which use digital platforms, connected devices, remote otoscopy, mobile applications, and artificial intelligence to extend clinical services beyond traditional healthcare settings and to transform hearing healthcare. These approaches can support hearing screening and diagnosis, remote hearing-device fitting and programming, cochlear implant care, aural rehabilitation, otologic triage, specialist consultation, and pre- and post-operative follow-up. They may be particularly valuable for people living in rural and underserved areas, children, older adults, and patients who face transportation, mobility, or financial barriers.Despite rapid technological development and increased adoption of remote services, important questions remain regarding clinical validity, safety, diagnostic accuracy, treatment effectiveness, patient and provider experience, and long-term outcomes. Existing studies have demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of several remote-care models, including remote audiometry, digital otoscopy, virtual counselling, remote device management, and store-and-forward consultation. However, the evidence remains heterogeneous, with variation in technologies, clinical protocols, outcome measures, patient populations, and comparator services. Further research is needed to determine when remote care can replace or complement in-person care, how hybrid pathways should be designed, and whether these models are cost-effective, secure, equitable, and sustainable in routine practice.This Research Topic aims to advance the evidence base for remote hearing and ear care across the lifespan by bringing together clinical, technological, implementation, and health-services research. We welcome studies that evaluate effectiveness, diagnostic concordance, safety, patient-reported outcomes, quality of life, cost-effectiveness, and service accessibility in teleaudiology and teleotology. The Research Topic also seeks to identify the factors that facilitate or hinder implementation, including workforce readiness, digital literacy, infrastructure, interoperability, reimbursement, regulation, data governance, and integration with existing clinical workflows. By connecting perspectives from audiology, otology and neurotology, engineering, public health, implementation science, and health economics, the Research Topic aims to support reliable, patient-centred, and equitable models of remote care. To gather further insights in remote hearing and ear care delivered through teleaudiology, teleotology, and hybrid services, with emphasis on clinical validity, patient outcomes, implementation, equity, and sustainability, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:• Remote, automated, and smartphone-based hearing screening, diagnosis, and monitoring, including validation against established in-person methods• Tele-otoscopy, digital ear imaging, remote diagnosis, triage, and specialist consultation for otologic disease• Remote pre-operative and post-operative care in otology and neurotology, including cochlear implant and middle-ear surgery pathways• Tele-fitting, remote programming, troubleshooting, and follow-up for hearing aids, cochlear implants, and other hearing technologies• Clinical effectiveness, diagnostic accuracy, safety, adherence, quality of life, and patient-reported outcomes associated with remote and hybrid care• Virtual counselling, tele-rehabilitation, digital therapeutics, and app-based interventions• Artificial intelligence, machine learning, wearable devices, connected technologies, and automated clinical decision support• Adaptive and personalised hearing care, including AI-enabled personalised care and hybrid care pathways• Digital behavioural science, including behaviour change interventions, self-management, engagement, and adherence• Digital inclusion and the reduction of health inequalities in hearing and ear care• Public health applications of teleaudiology, including hearing loss prevention, screening, and public health programs, including implementation frameworks such as national or regional clinic telemedicine platforms• Patient and provider experience, engagement, trust, communication, and digital literacy• Equity of access and outcomes among rural, remote, underserved, pediatric, older adult, and low- and middle-income populations• Implementation science, workflow redesign, workforce training, service integration, interoperability, and sustainability• Economic evaluation, reimbursement, regulation, licensing, quality assurance, cybersecurity, and data privacy• Comparative evaluations of remote, in-person, and hybrid models of hearing and ear care Topic editors: Helen Cullington, Eldre Wiida Beukes, Achintya K Bhowmik, Marco Carner, Nomfundo Moroe Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/84768/remote-hearing-care-innovation-outcomes-and-implementation-in-teleaudiology-and-teleotology