Factors constraining the benefit to speech understanding of combining information from low-frequency hearing and a cochlear implant
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Many studies have documented the benefits to speech understanding when cochlear implant (CI) patients can access low-frequency acoustic information from the ear opposite the implant. In this study we assessed the role of three factors in determining the magnitude of bimodal benefit - (i) the level of CI-only performance, (ii) the magnitude of the hearing loss in the ear with low-frequency acoustic hearing and (iii) the type of test material. The patients had low-frequency PTAs (average of 125, 250 and 500 Hz) varying over a large range (<30 dB HL to >70 dB HL) in the ear contralateral to the implant. The patients were tested with (i) CNC words presented in quiet (n = 105) (ii) AzBio sentences presented in quiet (n = 102), (iii) AzBio sentences in noise at +10 dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (n = 69), and (iv) AzBio sentences at +5 dB SNR (n = 64). We find maximum bimodal benefit when (i) CI scores are less than 60 percent correct, (ii) hearing loss is less than 60 dB HL in low-frequencies and (iii) the test material is sentences presented against a noise background. When these criteria are met, some bimodal patients can gain 40-60 percentage points in performance relative to performance with a CI. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled .
Medical Subject Headings
Acoustic Stimulation; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Audiometry, Speech; Auditory Threshold; Cochlear Implantation (instrumentation); Cochlear Implants; Comprehension; Electric Stimulation; Hearing Loss (diagnosis, physiopathology, psychology, rehabilitation); Humans; Middle Aged; Noise (adverse effects); Perceptual Masking; Persons with Hearing Disabilities (psychology, rehabilitation); Prosthesis Design; Severity of Illness Index; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; Speech Intelligibility; Speech Perception; Young Adult
Publication Date
4-1-2015
Publication Title
Hearing research
E-ISSN
1878-5891
Volume
322
First Page
107
Last Page
11
PubMed ID
25285624
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.1016/j.heares.2014.09.010
Recommended Citation
Dorman, Michael F.; Cook, Sarah; Spahr, Anthony; Zhang, Ting; Loiselle, Louise; Schramm, David; Whittingham, JoAnne; and Gifford, Rene, "Factors constraining the benefit to speech understanding of combining information from low-frequency hearing and a cochlear implant" (2015). ENT and Skull Base Surgery. 137.
https://scholar.barrowneuro.org/ent-and-skull-base-surgery/137