MSOA 2018

Effectiveness of Low Frequency Hearing in the Non-Implanted Ear: Evaluation and its Practical Implications in CI-HA Users

Michal Lunz 1,2,3 Ranin Khayr 1,3 Joseph Attias 3 Tova Most 4 Talma Shpak 1,3
1The Ear and Hearing Program, Otolaryngology Department, Bnai-Zion Medical Center
2The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion
3Department of Communication Disorders, Haifa University
4Department of Communication Disorders, School of Education, Tel-Aviv University

Background: Effectiveness of low frequency hearing in the non-implanted ear varies among individuals with similar thresholds in that ear. Therefore decision to implant the contra-lateral ear in CI-HA users with residual hearing in the non-implanted ear are sometimes very challenging. Since intonation perception depends on the presence of effective low frequencies hearing, it is reasonable to expect that information provided by a sensitive enough intonation test may support/negate such decisions as well as call for improving the fitting of the hearing aid.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate intonation perception in CI-HA users with moderate-severe hearing loss in the non-implanted ear using a new, more difficult and hopefully more sensitive intonation test.

Methods: 15 adult CI+HA bimodal users with moderate-severe hearing loss in the non-implanted ear) were asked to differentiate between statements and yes/no questions spoken by six different speakers (3 males and 3 females) with various voice characteristics in the presence of a challenging masker of four-talker babble (2 males and 2 females). The test was administered in three listening conditions: CI alone, HA alone and CI-HA.

Results: As expected, intonation perception was significantly higher in the CI-HA listening condition (mean=82%, SD=13%) compared to the CI alone condition (mean= 62%, SD=16%). Yet in 2 of the participants performance in the CI-HA condition was similar to that with CI alone, and in one performance with CI-HA condition was worse than in the CI condition.

Conclusions: Effectiveness of low frequency hearing can be specifically identified by the intonation test suggested in the present study. When deterioration in the non-implanted ear of a CI-HA user is evident, effort for improving the hearing aid fitting should be made, evaluating its success by the same test. When nevertheless effectiveness of low frequency hearing is not improved, contra-lateral CI is indicated









Powered by Eventact EMS