TL;DR
A monotic presentation mode using headphones is recommended for domestic screening, since domestic testing affect SRT results, and a follow up study using a large study population should assess Earcheck’s validity when performed at home.
Evidence is found that utilizing passive flat-attenuating ER-20 earplugs, and active flat-attenuating MP9-15 earplugs provide better speech understanding in noise for normal hearing listeners.
Recent studies have shown that noise exposures that produce temporary threshold shifts (TTS) can temporarily degrade NoSpi tone-in-noise detection, and that individuals who report frequent auditory symptoms after noise exposure often experience increased hearing difficulties and chronic degradations in both NoSo and NoSpi tone-in-noise detection despite having hearing thresholds in the normal range. The present study used data from two groups of Service Members (SMs) to determine whether these effects extended to speech-in-noise performance. Both groups of SMs completed a speech-in-noise test, pure-tone audiometry, and a questionnaire about TTS history. The first sample completed a version of the Modified Rhyme Test (MRT) with monaural, diotic, and binaural listening conditions in speech-shaped noise. The second completed the Spatial Digit Test (SDT), a test that requires listeners to use differences in interaural timing cues to segregate two simultaneous digits. SMs with a history of frequent TTS performed worse on both speech-in-noise and speech-on-speech masking tasks. However, the results did not provide strong evidence that TTS impairs binaural listening more than monaural listening. [The views expressed in this presentation are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Department of War or the U.S. Government.]
Background/Objectives: Some individuals present with difficulty understanding speech in noise, tinnitus, or both, despite normal conventional audiometric hearing thresholds. This study evaluated whether acoustic stapedial reflex thresholds (ASRTs) could serve as a clinically useful indicator of auditory complaints not captured by conventional audiometry. Methods: ASRTs for pure tones and broadband noise (BBN) were measured in 146 ears (73 participants) from controls, music students, and symptomatic participants. Bayesian random-intercept linear regression models were used to compare ASRTs among groups, adjusting for age and sex. ASRT difference scores were also used for ROC analysis and to estimate the difference between pure-tone and BBN thresholds (“BBN advantage”). Results: Symptomatic ears showed higher ASRTs than control ears with BBN stimuli, after adjustment for age and sex. Symptomatic ears had a lower AvgDiff posterior mean (reduced BBN advantage) than control ears. ASRTs for music students were directionally consistent with an intermediate pattern, but with wider credible intervals and greater uncertainty. Exploratory ROC analysis showed moderate separation between symptomatic and non-symptomatic ears with AvgDiff; however, symptom status was not independently validated against any diagnostic reference standard. Conclusions: The study suggests that a reduced BBN advantage may be associated with auditory complaints in individuals with normal hearing at conventional audiometric frequencies. However, these findings should be interpreted with caution and not used for specific diagnostic purposes, as the symptomatic group was substantially older and symptom status was not independently validated against any diagnostic reference standard.
Young adults with normal conventional audiograms may nonetheless show early noise-related auditory differences that routine surveillance misses. We evaluated a clinically feasible test battery using 280 occupationally noise-exposed workers and 100 age-matched low-noise controls (20-40 years; ≤20 dB HL at 0.5-8 kHz). Measures included conventional and extended high-frequency (EHF; 9-16 kHz) audiometry, distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs; 0.5-10 kHz), ipsilateral acoustic reflex thresholds (ARTs; 0.5, 1, and 2 kHz; 226-Hz probe tone), click-evoked auditory brainstem responses (ABR; wave I, wave V, and V/I ratio at 50 and 90 dBnHL), and Mandarin Bamford-Kowal-Bench speech-in-noise testing (SiN). Noise-exposed participants showed elevated ARTs at all elicitor frequencies, with the largest elevation at 2 kHz, as well as poorer EHF thresholds and lower DPOAE levels. In contrast, click-evoked ABR metrics did not differ between groups. After controlling for conventional-frequency pure-tone average (PTA4; 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz) and extended high-frequency pure-tone average (PTAEHF; 9–16 kHz), lower DPOAE amplitudes were associated with higher ARTs. ARTs were not significantly associated with SiN performance, quantified as the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) required for 50% correct recognition (SNR-50), cumulative noise exposure, or ABR measures. The noise-exposed group showed higher SNR-50 values, indicating poorer speech-in-noise performance. Within the noise-exposed group, SNR-50 was associated with PTA4 and cumulative noise exposure, whereas its association with PTAEHF was weaker and did not remain significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Together, these findings suggest that cochlear-status measures, conventional ARTs, and functional SiN performance provide complementary information beyond the conventional audiogram in occupational hearing surveillance.
Recent work suggests that listeners with both normal hearing (NH) and sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) exhibit more forward masking for a highly fluctuating Gaussian noise (GN) masker relative to a low-fluctuation noise (LFN) masker. This difference in masked thresholds, referred to as GN disruption, is affected by small differences in hearing sensitivity when measured using a brief (10-ms) probe signal and relatively short delays between masker offset and signal onset. We hypothesize that cochlear-gain control mediated by the medial olivocochlear (MOC) efferent system contributes to GN disruption. The current study used a behavioral forward-masking paradigm to measure GN disruption in human participants with hearing sensitivity ranging from normal to moderate SNHL. Results from one masker presentation level (80 dB SPL), two masker-signal delays (25 and 75 ms), and two masker types (GN and LFN) centered at 2000 Hz will be presented. This study is part of a series of experiments using physiological and otoacoustic-emission measures to assess GN disruption and the role of the MOC. Completion of these studies will improve our understanding of the mechanisms that contribute to excessive GN disruption in listeners with a range of hearing-sensitivity profiles.
While hearing aids are critical for providing audibility and supporting speech intelligibility, they can have negative effects on spatial perception. Currently, the range of available styles of hearing aids is rapidly expanding with the introduction of over-the-counter devices (OTCs), but little is known about their effects on spatial perception. Importantly, these devices are aimed at listeners with relatively mild hearing losses, who may be especially sensitive to spatial distortions. Our broad goal is to comprehensively characterize spatial perception with different OTCs, considering azimuth identification, front-back discrimination, and sound externalization. In an initial study, twelve adult listeners with normal hearing were bilaterally fitted with OTCs representing different form factors: behind-the-ear (BTE; Lexie B2 Plus with open and closed domes), completely-in-canal (CIC; Eargo SE), and earbuds (Apple Pro 2). Each listener completed the different spatial tasks while wearing each set of devices, with unaided performance as a reference. While the mean results revealed disruptive effects of each OTC for all tasks, the size of the effect depended strongly on the device and on the individual listener. A follow-up study is expanding the set of OTCs, including listeners with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, and supplementing the behavioral results with acoustical analyses of ear-canal signals.
We use cookies to run the site and, with your consent, for analytics and to show ads. See our Cookie Policy.
