Influence of audibility and distortion on the recognition of reverberant speech for children and adults with hearing aid amplification

Background: Adults and children with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) have trouble understanding speech in rooms with reverberation when using hearing aid amplification. While the use of amplitude compression signal processing in hearing aids may contribute to this difficulty, there is conflicting evidence on the effects of amplitude compression settings on speech recognition. Less clear is the effect of a fast release time for adults and children with SNHL when using compression ratios derived from a prescriptive procedure. Purpose: To determine whether release time impacts speech recognition in reverberation for children and adults with SNHL and to determine if these effects of release time and reverberation can be predicted using indices of audibility or temporal and spectral distortion. Research Design: A quasi-experimental cohort study. Participants used a hearing aid simulator set to the Desired Sensation Level algorithm m[i/o] for three different amplitude compression release times. Reverberation was simulated using three different reverberation times. Participants: Participants were 20 children and 16 adults with SNHL. Data Collection and Analyses: Participants were seated in a sound-attenuating booth and then nonsense syllable recognition was measured. Predictions of speech recognition were made using indices of audibility, temporal distortion, and spectral distortion and the effects of release time and reverberation were analyzed using linear mixed models. Results: While nonsense syllable recognition decreased in reverberation; release time did not significantly affect nonsense syllable recognition. Participants with lower audibility were more susceptible to the negative effect of reverberation on nonsense syllable recognition. Conclusions: We have extended previous work on the effects of reverberation on aided speech recognition to children with SNHL. Variations in release time did not impact the understanding of speech. An index of audibility best predicted nonsense syllable recognition in reverberation and, clinically, these results suggest that patients with less audibility are more susceptible to nonsense syllable recognition in reverberation.

Diadochokinetic Rate Quantification in 5 to 14 Year Old Children

ABSTRACT Background: Diadochokinetic Rate (DDK) is an ability of repeating a series of sounds quickly and repeatedly. This ability is one of variables to measure speaking ability. The need for normative data is important to provide prediction appropriately in order to establish speaking disorder diagnosis. This research aims to find quantitative data (DDK) in 5 to 14 year old children. Methods: The research employed observational approach. Data was collection was conducted through face-to-face examination with students as enumerator. Each of enumerators has been trained on how to examine and to document data, as indicated with audiovisual recording. Data was collected on January 2020. A total of 100 respondents were included into analysis criteria. Respondents were 5-14 year old normal children. Data analysis was conducted using descriptive analysis. Results: The research found data of Diadochokinetic Rate quantification at syllable and word levels. Quantification data shows the difference between nonsense syllable words and words. There was a difference of quantitative data in each of age groups. Analysis on examination result was carried out using mean and standard deviation scores. Conclusion: The finding of research showed recent data of DDK in 5 to 14 year old year children. Data can be used as the material of speech therapy examination analysis. Further researchers are required to see DDK ability broadly in each of age groups.

Senam Aerobik Intensitas Sedang Tingkatkan Memori Jangka Pendek Siswa SMK yang Diukur Menggunakan Nonsense Syllable Test

Latar Belakang: Gangguan fungsi memori jangka pendek dapat timbul salah satunya akibat aktivitas fisik yang rendah. Beberapa penelitian menyatakan bahwa aktivitas fisik seperti olahraga aerobik yang dilakukan pada kelompok dewasa muda diketahui mampu meningkatkan fungsi memori jangka pendek. Memori jangka pendek memiliki peran penting dalam kehidupan sehari-hari, terutama dalam proses pengolahan informasi. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah menganalisis perbedaan fungsi memori jangka pendek yang diukur menggunakan nonsense syllable test sebelum dan setelah perlakuan senam aerobik intensitas sedang. Metode: Penelitian kuasi eksperimental dengan desain pre and post-test. Subjek penelitian adalah siswi SMK Widya Praja Ungaran (n=36) berusia 16-18 tahun yang dipilih secara purposive sampling. Sampel terbagi menjadi dua yaitu kelompok kontrol dan perlakuan. Penelitian ini menggunakan instrumen nonsense syllable test untuk pengukuran memori jangka pendek. Analisis menggunakan uji t berpasangan dan t tidak berpasangan. Hasil: Skor pre-test dan post-test pada kelompok kontrol dan perlakuan mengalami kenaikan. Namun, kenaikan skor pada kelompok perlakuan lebih tinggi yaitu 5 sedangkan pada kelompok kontrol 1,17. Terdapat perbedaan bermakna skor memori jangka pendek setelah perlakuan antar kelompok kontrol dan perlakuan (p=0,023). Terdapat perbedaan yang bermakna memori jangka pendek sebelum dan setelah perlakuan pada kelompok perlakuan (p = 0,000) Kesimpulan: Senam aerobik intensitas sedang sesi tunggal dapat meningkatkan fungsi memori jangka pendek

Evaluation of Wideband Frequency Responses and Nonlinear Frequency Compression for Children with Cookie-Bite Audiometric Configurations

Background: Previous research has suggested that use of nonlinear frequency compression (NLFC) can improve audibility for high-frequency sounds and speech recognition of children with moderate to profound high-frequency hearing loss. Furthermore, previous studies have generally found no detriment associated with the use of NLFC. However, there have been no published studies examining the effect of NLFC on the performance of children with cookie-bite audiometric configurations. For this configuration of hearing loss, frequency-lowering processing will likely move high-frequency sounds to a lower frequency range at which a greater degree of hearing loss exists. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the effects of wideband amplification and NLFC on high-frequency audibility and speech recognition of children with cookie-bite audiometric configurations. Research Design: This study consisted of a within-participant design with repeated measures across test conditions. Study Sample: Seven children, ages 6–13 yr, with cookie-bite audiometric configurations and normal hearing or mild hearing loss at 6000 and 8000 Hz, were recruited. Intervention: Participants were fitted with Phonak Nios S H2O III behind-the-ear hearing aids and Oticon Safari 300 behind-the-ear hearing aids. Data Collection: The participants were evaluated after three 4-to 6-wk intervals: (1) Phonak Nios S H2O III without NLFC, (2) Phonak Nios S H2O III with NLFC, and (3) Oticon Safari 300 with wideband frequency response extending to 8000 Hz. The order in which each technology was used was counterbalanced across participants. High-frequency audibility was evaluated by assessing aided thresholds (dB SPL) for warble tones and the high-frequency phonemes /sh/ and /s/. Speech recognition in quiet was measured with the University of Western Ontario (UWO) Plurals Test, the UWO Distinctive Features Difference (DFD) Test, and the Phoneme Perception Test vowel-consonant-vowel nonsense syllable test. Sentence recognition in noise was evaluated with the Bamford-Kowal-Bench Speech-In-Noise (BKB-SIN) Test. Analysis: Repeated-measures analyses of variance were used to analyze the data collected in this study. The results across the three different conditions were compared. Results: No difference in performance across conditions was observed for detection of high-frequency warble tones and the speech sounds /sh/ and /s/. No significant difference was seen across conditions for speech recognition in quiet when measured with the UWO Plurals Test, the UWO-DFD Test, and the Phoneme Perception Test vowel-consonant-vowel nonsense syllable test. Finally, there were also no differences across conditions on the BKB-SIN Test. Conclusions: These results suggest that NLFC does not degrade or improve audibility for and recognition of high-frequency speech sounds as well as sentence recognition in noise when compared with wideband amplification for children with cookie-bite audiometric configurations.