Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-08-07DOI: 10.1177/23312165261477842
Wulan Zhao, Alexis Pinsonnault-Skvarenina, Meibian Zhang, Zhili Zhang, Hangze Mao, Shixing Bai, Hua Zou, Dan Guo, Changyan Yu, Adrian Fuente, Wei Qiu
{"title":"Auditory Differences in Occupationally Noise-Exposed Workers With Normal Conventional Audiograms: A Multi-Measure Surveillance Approach.","authors":"Wulan Zhao, Alexis Pinsonnault-Skvarenina, Meibian Zhang, Zhili Zhang, Hangze Mao, Shixing Bai, Hua Zou, Dan Guo, Changyan Yu, Adrian Fuente, Wei Qiu","doi":"10.1177/23312165261477842","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261477842","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>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 (PTA<sub>4</sub>; 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz) and extended high-frequency pure-tone average (PTA<sub>EHF</sub>; 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 PTA<sub>4</sub> and cumulative noise exposure, whereas its association with PTA<sub>EHF</sub> 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.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261477842"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13451705/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148690024","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-03-23DOI: 10.1177/23312165261434604
Ranin Khayr, Riyad Khnifes, Karen Banai
{"title":"Visual Implicit Learning and Speech Recognition in Adult Post-Lingual Cochlear Implant Users.","authors":"Ranin Khayr, Riyad Khnifes, Karen Banai","doi":"10.1177/23312165261434604","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261434604","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Implicit learning is thought to play an important role in speech recognition under challenging conditions. However, auditory deprivation has been proposed to influence implicit learning, including in the visual modality, although evidence in adults with post-lingual deafness is limited. Therefore, we investigated implicit visual learning and its associations with speech recognition in adults with post-lingual deafness who use cochlear implants (CIs). Thus, this study focuses on the effects of late auditory deprivation rather than on the effects of early deprivation associated with congenital deafness. Adult CI users (n = 30) and a group of individuals with normal hearing (NH, n = 36) completed two implicit visual learning tasks (statistical and perceptual), a battery of challenging speech recognition tests and cognitive measures (vocabulary, working memory, attention, and verbal processing speed). NH listeners demonstrated significant visual statistical learning, whereas CI users showed a similar but nonsignificant pattern. In the visual perceptual learning task, both groups exhibited comparable learning effects. In CI users, visual statistical learning contributed to the recognition of speech in noise (words and sentences). Visual perceptual learning only contributed to the recognition of words in noise. The current findings are inconsistent with the idea that auditory deprivation beyond the sensitive period interferes with visual learning. Rather, in CI users, visual implicit learning contributes to the recognition of challenging speech. Therefore, future work might investigate whether visual learning in CI candidates is predictive of postimplantation milestones.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261434604"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13010005/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147500104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-07-29DOI: 10.1177/23312165261466799
Brian C J Moore, Petra von Gablenz, Graham Cox, Judy R Dubno, Lauren K Dillard, David Lowe, Hedwig E Gockel
{"title":"Diagnosing Noise-Induced Hearing Loss Sustained During Military Service for Men Aged Between 61 and 80 Years.","authors":"Brian C J Moore, Petra von Gablenz, Graham Cox, Judy R Dubno, Lauren K Dillard, David Lowe, Hedwig E Gockel","doi":"10.1177/23312165261466799","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261466799","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A recently described method (rM-NIHL) for diagnosing noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) sustained during military service for men aged up to 60 years was developed based on the shapes of the audiograms of noise-exposed military personnel and a control group matched in age but without known noise exposure. Here, the applicability of the rM-NIHL method to men aged 61 to 80 years was evaluated, based on a database including 329 military noise-exposed men (ExpDB) and a database including 123 non-exposed men (ContDB). The method had high sensitivity but poor specificity. For further analysis, ExpDB was randomly split into ExpDB1 and ExpDB2, and ContDB was randomly split into ContDB1 and ContDB2. ExpDB1 and ContDB1 were used for the development of new methods and ExpDB2 and ContDB2 were used for evaluation. Modification of the criteria used in the rM-NIHL method led to a better balance between sensitivity and specificity, but the overall diagnostic performance was only moderate. A new method, denoted M-NIHL60+, was developed based on a weighted average of the age-corrected hearing thresholds across all frequencies from 1 to 8 kHz. This method gave a reasonable balance between sensitivity and specificity and gave higher diagnostic performance than the original rM-NIHL method or the rM-NIHL method with modified criteria. Comparison of data for older and younger exposed groups (assessed previously) supported the hypothesis that the rate of change of thresholds with age for noise-exposed individuals is greater for frequencies where the initial NIHL is small than for frequencies where it is large.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261466799"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13424519/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622298","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-09-17DOI: 10.1177/23312165261489985
Xinyu Guo, Rebecca Holt, Kelly Miles, Ronny Kurniawan Ibrahim, Stefan Raufer, Peter Derleth, Joerg M Buchholz
{"title":"Development and Evaluation of a Realistic Audio-Visual Multi-Talker Speech Comprehension Test.","authors":"Xinyu Guo, Rebecca Holt, Kelly Miles, Ronny Kurniawan Ibrahim, Stefan Raufer, Peter Derleth, Joerg M Buchholz","doi":"10.1177/23312165261489985","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23312165261489985","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Current speech comprehension assessments do not provide a reliable measure of listeners' real-life speech comprehension ability, as they fail to capture the complexity and dynamic nature of real-world communicative scenarios. To better align laboratory assessment with real-world listening demands, we developed a new speech comprehension test using audio-visual recordings of spontaneous conversations between two talkers. The conversations were combined with babble noise at three different signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) to vary task difficulty (Quiet, 0dB, and -5dB). Speech comprehension was assessed using a word monitoring paradigm, in which listeners were given a word category and responded to target words related to that category by pressing a hand-held button. Outcome measures included self-rated listening effort, hit rate, response time (RT), and head turn behavior. Thirty adults with normal hearing were tested. With decreasing SNR, self-reported listening effort increased, hit rate decreased, and RT increased. Participants predominantly oriented toward the active talker, with visual localization achieved through a combination of head and eye movements. Dynamic analyses around conversational floor transfers revealed that, listeners oriented earlier and more consistently toward the upcoming talker in more challenging conditions. None of the behavioral measures were significantly associated with listening effort ratings after accounting for SNR effects. Overall, our results demonstrate that the proposed test provides a sensitive measure of real-world speech comprehension and holds promise for assessing the impact of hearing loss and evaluating hearing device benefit in ecologically valid settings.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261489985"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148992090","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1177/23312165261418655
Saskia Röttges, Christopher Hauth, Kirsten C Wagener, Thomas Brand
{"title":"Analysis of Spatial, Binaural, and Better-Ear Benefits for Different Degrees of Hearing Loss Using a Binaural Speech Intelligibility Model.","authors":"Saskia Röttges, Christopher Hauth, Kirsten C Wagener, Thomas Brand","doi":"10.1177/23312165261418655","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261418655","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study analyzed speech recognition thresholds (SRTs) in noise of 738 listeners with different degrees of hearing loss, including normal hearing. Speech was presented from the front, while noise was presented from either the front or from +90° or -90° azimuth, corresponding to the ear with the worse hearing threshold. The latter condition was tested binaurally and monaurally (using the only better ear (BE)). Listeners showed larger variance in SRTs than in spatial, binaural, and BE benefits, regardless of their hearing loss. A model consisting of a blind equalization-cancellation (EC) front-end and the non-blind speech intelligibility index (SII, ANSI S3.5-1997) was used to predict the measured SRTs. This model used a pure-tone audiogram to simulate hearing loss. We evaluated whether an individual suprathreshold component improves the model's prediction accuracy. This component was implemented in two ways: as an individual reference SII value (from the SRT of the S<sub>0</sub>N<sub>0</sub> situation) and as an individually increased external noise. Both methods improved prediction accuracy for the S<sub>0</sub>N<sub>90</sub> conditions but had no effect on spatial or binaural release from masking, nor on BE listening. No evidence was found that other available parameters would improve the prediction accuracy.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261418655"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12901929/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146183031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-05-31DOI: 10.1177/23312165261457293
Paula T Kuokkanen, Z Mehnoush Faghani, Ira Kraemer, Richard Kempter, Catherine E Carr
{"title":"Inhibitory inputs to avian ITD circuits.","authors":"Paula T Kuokkanen, Z Mehnoush Faghani, Ira Kraemer, Richard Kempter, Catherine E Carr","doi":"10.1177/23312165261457293","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261457293","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In birds, detection of sound source azimuth begins in the nucleus laminaris (NL), which computes interaural time differences (ITDs). Inhibition has been proposed to protect NL neurons from losing ITD sensitivity with increasing sound level, although the nature of this inhibition is incompletely understood. Anatomical studies show GABAergic synapses throughout NL and first order nuclei, while in vitro studies in chicken NL showed that GABAergic inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) shorten membrane time constants, perhaps to allow the membrane potential to follow rapid synaptic currents accurately over a range of sound levels. Given the importance of inhibition in regulating auditory brainstem activity, we examined the nature of inhibitory input to NL in vivo. The Superior Olivary Nucleus (SON) is the major source of descending GABAergic inhibition to the ipsilateral nucleus magnocellularis (NM), nucleus angularis (NA) and NL, and receives excitatory input from NA and NL. We used viral tracers to reveal projections from SON to NL, and characterized response types within SON. In NL, we isolated inhibitory synaptic contributions from extracellular field potentials through the iontophoretic application of blockers of GABA (gabazine) or glycine (strychnine). These blockers increase onset and offset responses evoked by tonal stimuli, but did not shift best ITD. The co-application of gabazine and strychnine revealed supra-linear summation of GABA and glycine. Profiles of synaptic activation revealed more prominent inhibition following stimulus offset, suggesting inputs to NL originate from both sustained and offset response types of the SON. These heterogeneous responses may represent separate SON neuronal populations. Together, our results support the role of SON inhibition in increasing the dynamic range of ITD tuning of NL neurons.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261457293"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13223351/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148101996","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-07-02DOI: 10.1177/23312165261464687
Theresa Jansen, Kirsten C Wagener, Inga Holube, Laura Hartog, Christopher F Hauth, Saskia Ibelings, Jonte Kriebel, Dirk Oetting
{"title":"Advantages of Fluctuating Noise for Measuring Speech Intelligibility in Listeners With Hearing Loss.","authors":"Theresa Jansen, Kirsten C Wagener, Inga Holube, Laura Hartog, Christopher F Hauth, Saskia Ibelings, Jonte Kriebel, Dirk Oetting","doi":"10.1177/23312165261464687","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261464687","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Measures of speech intelligibility in noise show limited correspondence with difficulties people with hearing loss report from daily life. This mismatch suggests that standard measurement conditions do not sufficiently capture aspects that are relevant for speech perception, such as dip listening and spatial release from masking. In the present study we developed and evaluated a test condition that incorporates these aspects and compared it with a standard condition. Speech intelligibility was measured in 100 participants with normal hearing (NH, N=17) and hearing loss (HL, N=83) ranging from mild to severe. Measurements were conducted using the German matrix sentence test (OLSA) in the standard condition with frontal presentation of stationary noise co-located with the target speech, and the proposed condition with fluctuating, speech-like maskers spatially separated (±60°) from the target. Stimuli were presented via headphones using virtual acoustics. Tests were performed unaided and with individualized amplification. The proposed condition revealed reduced speech intelligibility also for listeners with HL that showed close-to-normal speech intelligibility in the standard condition. With individualized amplification, more listeners with HL showed reduced speech intelligibility compared to NH listeners than in the standard condition. Benefit of amplification varied widely across individuals with similar hearing thresholds, with some listeners showing little or no benefit. The advantages of the proposed condition were driven by masker fluctuations rather than by spatial separation of sound sources. These findings demonstrate that speech intelligibility measurements incorporating fluctuating maskers provide potentially relevant information beyond standard assessments and can support a more individualized assessment of hearing loss.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261464687"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13329021/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148370312","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-08-06DOI: 10.1177/23312165261476429
Hasan Colak, Ester Benzaquén, Xiaoxuan Guo, Meher Lad, William Sedley, Timothy D Griffiths
{"title":"Auditory Working Memory Mediates the Relationship Between Musical Sophistication and Speech-In-Noise Perception.","authors":"Hasan Colak, Ester Benzaquén, Xiaoxuan Guo, Meher Lad, William Sedley, Timothy D Griffiths","doi":"10.1177/23312165261476429","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261476429","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Understanding speech in noisy environments (SPIN) is an important everyday ability, and engaging in musical activities has been proposed as a factor that may support this ability. However, the cognitive mechanisms underlying a potential musical advantage in SPIN perception remain unclear. Here we investigated whether musical sophistication is associated with better SPIN perception in a large population-based sample, and whether this relationship is mediated by auditory working memory (AWM), verbal working memory (VWM), or non-verbal intelligence. We recruited 203 participants and measured SPIN perception at both word and sentence levels. Musical sophistication was assessed using the Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index (Gold-MSI). AWM was measured using delayed matching of tone frequency or the modulation rate of amplitude modulated white noise, VWM was based on backward digit span task, and non-verbal intelligence used matrix reasoning. Mediation analyses revealed that AWM fully mediated the relationship between musical sophistication and SPIN perception, whereas VWM showed no mediation effect. Non-verbal intelligence showed a partial mediating effect. Additional control analyses using structural equation modelling revealed that the indirect effect through AWM remained significant after accounting for age, hearing thresholds, and non-verbal intelligence. Together, these findings suggest that greater musical sophistication is associated with better daily-life listening abilities, and that AWM may be an important cognitive factor linking musical sophistication and SPIN perception.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261476429"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13451701/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148686398","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-08-06DOI: 10.1177/23312165261468752
Kai-Lin Shen, Chao-Nan Wang
{"title":"Enhancing Externalization of Frontal Virtual Sound Sources in Binaural Synthesis via Level and Reflection Adjustment of Non-individualized BRIRs.","authors":"Kai-Lin Shen, Chao-Nan Wang","doi":"10.1177/23312165261468752","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261468752","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study addresses the common issue of low externalization in binaural synthesis when listening to virtual sound sources through wearable devices. The improvement of externalization of frontal sound sources (0°-30° azimuth), which are perceived as being closer to the listener, was investigated. A consistent pattern across different rooms was identified using a single-speaker non-individualized binaural room impulse response (NI-BRIR). The binaural level decreases regularly with increasing azimuth up to 45°(front right) but levels off beyond this point. Based on the strong correlation among binaural level, azimuth, and externalization, we developed a two-phase approach. In Phase I, scaling factors were applied to the NI-BRIRs to equalize the binaural level across different frontal azimuths. Our results showed this adjustment significantly improved externalization, with a large effect size for azimuths from 0°-30°. Building on this adjustment, we further enhanced the early reflections of the NI-BRIR for 0° and 15° to simulate the temporal signal conditions of angles with better externalization (Phase II), aiming to modify the ratio between direct sound and main reflections. This modification had a positive and additive effect. The effective enhancement of externalization of frontal virtual sound sources was demonstrated by a consistent set of scaling factors and strategic adjustments to early reflections. These findings suggest a practical corrective method for single-speaker NI-BRIRs, contributing to more realistic binaural synthesis in applications such as wearable audio technology and hearing support systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261468752"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13451706/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148680608","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in HearingPub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2026-03-23DOI: 10.1177/23312165261431922
Erin M Picou, Laura W Balling, Taylor Dalzell, Kjersten Branscome, Eric Branda
{"title":"Optimizing Sound Quality Improves Hearing Aid Users' Moods and Listening-Related Fatigue.","authors":"Erin M Picou, Laura W Balling, Taylor Dalzell, Kjersten Branscome, Eric Branda","doi":"10.1177/23312165261431922","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23312165261431922","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of sound quality on ratings of mood (esteem-related affect, vigor, and fatigue), listening-related fatigue, and perceived hearing-related experiences (speech intelligibility, perceived disability, participation, concentration). Thirty adults (51-80 years old) with bilateral hearing loss and at least six months of hearing aid experience participated in this crossover study. They adjusted hearing aids based on sound quality in a laboratory setting, creating a preferred program (good sound quality) and a non-preferred program (tolerable sound quality). After a cooling-off period, they wore each hearing aid program (counterbalanced) home for approximately one week each. During the home trial, they provided ratings of hearing aid sound quality, mood, and hearing-related experiences daily. After each home trial, they rated their listening-related fatigue retrospectively. Sound quality ratings were significantly related to hearing-related experiences and mood ratings during the home trial. Nineteen of the participants preferred their \"good\" program during the home trial, while the remaining 11 preferred the \"tolerable\" program. For the participants whose program preference was consistent between the lab and home experiences, listening-related fatigue and mood were significantly better during the week with the \"good\" program. These results highlight the importance of sound quality for listening-related fatigue and mood for adult hearing aid users.</p>","PeriodicalId":48678,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Hearing","volume":"30 ","pages":"23312165261431922"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13009785/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147500089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}