Ear and Hearing最新文献

{"title":"Effect of Speech Material and Scoring Method on Psychometric Curves for Cochlear Implant Users and Typical Hearing Listeners.","authors":"Hendrik Christiaan Stronks, Robin van Deurzen, Paula Louisa Jansen, Jeroen Johannes Briaire, Johan Hubertus Maria Frijns","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001672","DOIUrl":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001672","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Cochlear implants (CIs) are the primary treatment for severe-to-profound hearing loss. For CI users, speech intelligibility (SI) is often excellent in quiet yet degrades dramatically in background noise. Scientific and clinical testing of the effects of noise on SI is routinely performed with speech-in-noise tests. The sensitivity of these tests to signal to noise ratio depends on the slope of their psychometric curve. This slope is not always known for CI users, and direct comparisons between typical hearing (TH) listeners and CI users are lacking.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>We present a comparative study of a digit test (DIN), a Matrix sentence test, and an everyday sentence test (LIST) for a group of CI users and TH listeners, with use of word (digit) and sentence (triplet) scoring in the free field. We report descriptive statistics and effect size measures of the psychometric slope and the speech reception threshold (SRT) for each speech test.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>For CI users, the slopes of the psychometric curve were significantly shallower and SRTs significantly higher than those of TH listeners. The shallowest slope was seen with the Matrix test. However, the small variances of the slope and the SRT resulted in effect size estimates that fell between those of the other two tests. The DIN test was associated with steeply sloped psychometric curves with low variance. The scoring method did not substantially affect slopes and SRTs for the DIN test and LIST sentences, but word scoring resulted in shallow slopes and substantially worse SRTs for CI users.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The DIN test stood out in this study as an attractive speech-in-noise test for CI users, with steep slopes and low variance in slopes and SRTs among participants. Digit and keyword scoring appear to be viable options for the DIN test and LIST sentences, respectively, potentially increasing the number of available test items. For the Matrix test, sentence scoring yielded shallow slopes and deteriorated SI, especially for the CI group. We recommend word scoring for the Dutch-Flemish Matrix test.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":"1329-1341"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12352559/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144043143","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}

{"title":"Health Service Use in Children With Mild Bilateral and Unilateral Hearing Loss.","authors":"Elizabeth M Fitzpatrick, Eunjung Na, Marie Pigeon, Janet Olds, Lamia Hayawi, Nick Barrowman, Bahar Rafinejad-Farahani, Doug Coyle, Isabelle Gaboury, Andrée Durieux-Smith, Flora Nassrallah, JoAnne Whittingham","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001661","DOIUrl":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001661","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Objectives: &lt;/strong&gt;The number of children identified early with mild bilateral and unilateral hearing loss (MUHL) has increased over the past 3 decades due to population-based newborn hearing screening initiatives. Early identification involves additional hearing-related services for these children in the early years. Despite the growing number of children, little information exists regarding their use of health care services. We examined overall health care utilization for this population of children with hearing loss in a Canadian pediatric center as well as the factors associated with audiology and early intervention service utilization.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Design: &lt;/strong&gt;As part of a longitudinal MUHL research program, we examined health care utilization in a population-based cohort of 182 children with MUHL who were identified in one Canadian pediatric center from 2014 to 2018 and followed up to 6 years. Audiologic characteristics were collected prospectively, and health care utilization data were collected retrospectively through administrative databases. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize health care encounters. We used negative binomial regression models to examine the relationship between several clinical factors including age of diagnosis, degree, and laterality (unilateral/mild bilateral) of hearing loss, use of hearing technology, developmental concerns, and services used in audiology and early intervention.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;The 182 children were diagnosed at a median age of 4.1 months (interquartile range: 1.9, 55.7) and mean follow-up time was 48.6 (SD: 20.0) months. A total of 9867 hospital encounters were recorded in the medical chart including 2247 audiology, 3429 early intervention, and 701 Ear Nose and Throat service encounters. For audiology services, health care utilization (rate of visits per month of follow-up) was related to whether hearing loss was mild bilateral or unilateral, use of hearing aid(s), progressive hearing loss, developmental concerns, and age of diagnosis. Children with mild bilateral hearing loss had 68% more visits compared with children with unilateral hearing loss. Children with hearing aid(s) had 86%more visits than those without amplification. During the study period, 68.1% of children had at least one early intervention visit. In multivariable regression, after controlling for time followed, earlier age at diagnosis, bilateral hearing loss, use of hearing aid(s), progressive hearing loss, more severe hearing loss, and developmental concerns were all significantly associated with more early intervention service utilization.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions: &lt;/strong&gt;Our findings provide a comprehensive profile of hearing-related services provided to a population-based cohort of early-identified children with MUHL. Children with mild bilateral loss required more audiology services than those with unilateral hearing loss. Two-thirds of the children with MUHL utilized some ear","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":"1235-1246"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144046747","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}

{"title":"Speech Understanding in Noise Under Different Attentional Demands in Children With Typical Hearing and Cochlear Implants.","authors":"Lyan Porto, Jan Wouters, Astrid van Wieringen","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001680","DOIUrl":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001680","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Complex listening environments are common in the everyday life of both adults and children and often require listeners must monitor possible speakers and switch or maintain attention as the situation requires. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of these attention dynamics on speech perception in adults, children with typical hearing (TH) and children with cochlear implants (CIs).</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Twenty-seven adults with TH (mean age 20.8 years), 24 children with TH (mean age 10.6 years), and 8 children with CIs (mean age 10.1 years) were tested on a speech understanding in noise task using AVATAR, a realistic audiovisual paradigm. Participants were asked to repeat the sentence as closely as possible. In one task, participants performed an adaptive speech-in-noise task to determine speech reception thresholds for sentences recorded by a male and a female speaker. In the second task, both male and female speakers could speak simultaneously in controlled conditions that required participants to either switch attention from one to another or maintain attention on the first. Eye-tracking data were collected concomitantly with both listening tasks, providing pupillometry and gaze behavior data. Participants also completed cognitive tests assessing memory, attention, processing speed, and language ability.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Listening data showed that all groups had more difficulty switching attention from a distractor to a target than maintaining attention on a target and ignoring an incoming distractor. In the single-talker task, adults performed better than children, and children with TH performed better than children with CIs. In addition, pupillometry data showed that children with CIs exerted more listening effort in the single-talker task. Gaze data suggest that listeners fixate longer on target under more challenging conditions, but if demands on attention become too great, eye movements increase. Cognitive tests supported previous evidence that children with CIs' difficulties in speech understanding in noise are related to difficulties in sustaining attention.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Switching attention is more challenging than sustaining attention in listening situations children face every day, including CI users. Furthermore, children with CIs appear to exert effort beyond what is captured by listening tasks and struggle with maintaining attention over longer periods than typically hearing peers, highlighting the need to consider the characteristics of learning environments of children with CIs even if hearing thresholds are in typical range.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":"1385-1399"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144250890","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}

{"title":"Meta-Analyses of Auditory Evoked Potentials as Alzheimer Biomarkers.","authors":"Arash Bayat, Golshan Mirmomeni, Steven Aiken, Zahra Jafari","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001718","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001718","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Alterations in auditory evoked potential (AEP) parameters have been associated with sensory memory deficits and may serve as biomarkers for cognitive decline. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of AEPs in the early detection of Alzheimer disease (AD).</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>The systematic review was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines. A comprehensive search was performed across five electronic databases (EMBASE, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PubMed, and CINAHL) from their inception until August 2024, without restrictions on date or language. The methodological quality of evidence was assessed using the Crew Critical Appraisal Tool. Data were extracted on the latency and amplitude of five AEP components, including auditory P50 gating, mismatch negativity, and late-latency responses (N100, N200, P300), comparing patients with AD to age-matched control peers.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Out of 437 publications, 54 articles were selected for review, with most rated as having high methodological quality. The analysis revealed a significantly larger P50 gating amplitude (p < 0.001) in patients with AD. Furthermore, patients with AD demonstrated significantly prolonged latencies and reduced amplitudes for N100, N200, and P300 components (p ≤ 0.001) compared with controls. Among all AEPs, P300 latency exhibited the largest effect size. Funnel plot analysis and Egger's regression test showed no evidence of publication bias.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our findings support the clinical utility of AEPs in early AD detection, with the P300 response identified as the most accurate electrophysiological measure for distinguishing patients with AD from the control group. These results highlight the value of incorporating AEPs into clinical assessment protocols to enhance early-stage AD diagnosis and monitoring, thereby facilitating timely interventions and the development of personalized treatment strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144979507","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}

{"title":"Vestibular Loss and Cerebellar Ataxia: A Practical Approach.","authors":"Lucia Joffily, Syuzanna Simonyan, Paola Giunti, Alexander Andrea Tarnutzer, Nehzat Koohi, Diego Kaski","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001708","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001708","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cerebellar ataxia has been the remit of neurology but increased awareness of genetic disorders affecting both cerebellar and vestibular function has led to a rise in their reported prevalence. It is not uncommon for such patients to be seen in otolaryngology clinics. This review explores the underlying etiologies of patients presenting with vestibular loss accompanied by signs of cerebellar ataxia and provides a practical approach to diagnosis. We provide a comprehensive overview of common conditions that can manifest with both vestibular dysfunction and cerebellar ataxia, acutely or chronically, including cerebellar strokes, thiamine deficiency, and neurodegenerative diseases such as spinocerebellar ataxias. The article explores key diagnostic approaches, including clinical examination, neuroimaging, and specialized vestibular testing, to aid in distinguishing these conditions. By focusing on practical aspects of diagnosis, we offer otolaryngology specialists an essential tool for more accurate identification and management of patients, aiming to improve patient care. We emphasize the importance of a systematic, multidisciplinary approach to managing complex vestibular cases.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144823273","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}

{"title":"Uncovering Phenotypes in Sensorineural Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review of Unsupervised Machine Learning Approaches.","authors":"Lilia Dimitrov, Liam Barrett, Aizaz Chaudhry, Jameel Muzaffar, Watjana Lilaonitkul, Nishchay Mehta","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001696","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001696","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>The majority of the 1.5 billion people living with hearing loss are affected by sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). Reliably categorizing these individuals into distinct subtypes remains a significant challenge, which is a critical step for developing tailored treatment approaches. Unsupervised machine learning, a branch of artificial intelligence (AI), offers a promising solution to this issue. However, no study has yet compared the outcomes of different AI models in this context. The purpose of this review is to synthesize the existing literature on the application of unsupervised machine learning models to hearing health data for identifying subtypes of SNHL.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>A systematic search was performed of the following databases: MEDLINE, PsycINFO (Ovid version), EMBASE, CINAHL, IEEE, and Scopus as well as a search of grey literature using GitHub and Base, and manual search (Jan 1990-Mar 2024). Studies were included only if they reported on adult patients with SNHL and used an unsupervised machine-learning approach. Quality assessment was performed using the APPRAISE-AI tool. The heterogeneity of studies necessitated a narrative synthesis of the results.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Seven studies were included in the analysis. Apart from one case-control study, all were cohort studies. Four different algorithms were used, with no study comparing the performance of more than one algorithm. Across these studies, only 2 distinct numbers of subtypes were identified: 4 and 11. However, the overall quality of the studies was deemed low, thus preventing definitive conclusions regarding model selection and the actual number of subtypes.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This systematic review identifies key methodological practices that need to be improved before the potential of unsupervised machine learning models to subtype SNHL can be realized. Future research in this field should justify model selection, ensure reproducibility, use high-quality hearing data, and validate model findings.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144796178","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}

{"title":"Exploratory Analysis of Cortical-Vestibular Interaction: The Relation Between Caloric-Induced Changes in Electroencephalography Frequency Bands, the Vestibulo-Ocular Reflex, and Perception.","authors":"Daniel J Romero, Catie Chang, Danielle Clay, Richard A Roberts, Jim Bodfish, Gary P Jacobson","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001710","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001710","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Standardized assessments of vestibular function primarily focus on the structural integrity of brainstem reflexes. However, patients may report symptoms linked to disruptions in central vestibular processing and integration, mechanisms that remain poorly understood. Emerging evidence suggests that electroencephalography (EEG) can characterize the neural dynamics of central vestibular processing. This exploratory study examines the effects of caloric-induced vestibular stimulation on EEG rhythms to further elucidate neural dynamics and their relationship with lower-order (brainstem reflexes) and higher-order (perception) vestibular processes.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Ten healthy, right-handed participants underwent EEG recording during resting and caloric vestibular stimulation periods. Changes in spectral power were quantified using a measure that captured both desynchronization (suppression) and synchronization (enhancement) across frequency bands.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Results revealed a significant and widely distributed suppression of the alpha band. The individual changes in EEG frequency bands were not correlated with the degree of brainstem caloric responsiveness (peak slow phase velocity), while the changes in beta were significantly related to a measure of caloric-induced perception.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Although future studies should focus on the reproducibility and validity of vestibular-induced EEG responses, these findings support measurable cortical-vestibular interactions using EEG and highlight its potential to bridge gaps in knowledge between traditional assessment and cortical contributions to dizziness and imbalance.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144762405","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}

{"title":"Health-Related Quality of Life Among People With Bilateral Vestibulopathy With and Without Hearing Loss: A Prospective Study Using Generic and Disease-Specific Instruments.","authors":"Cathérine Jorissen, Julie Moyaert, Bieke Dobbels, Paul Van de Heyning, Annick Gilles, Olivier Vanderveken, Griet Mertens, Angelica Pérez-Fornos, Nils Guinand, Raymond van de Berg, Marc J W Lammers, Vincent Van Rompaey","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001681","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001681","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Bilateral vestibulopathy (BVP) is a chronic vestibular disorder which leads to postural imbalance, gait unsteadiness, and movement-induced oscillopsia. Limited data are available on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with BVP and whether the association with sensorineural hearing loss would further impact these results. The aim of this study was to study HRQoL among patients with BVP using generic and disease-specific instruments in patients with and without concomitant sensorineural hearing loss.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A prospective study was performed at the Antwerp University Hospital on patients diagnosed with BVP according to the 2017 Bárány Society criteria. The EuroQol-5D-5L (EQ-5D-5L) and Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI-3) were used to assess generic HRQoL. The Dizziness Handicap Index (DHI) and Oscillopsia Severity Questionnaire (OSQ) were used to assess disease-specific HRQoL. To determine the influence of concomitant hearing impairment on HRQoL, the hearing status was tested using the unaided pure-tone averages dB HL (PTA 1, 2, and 4 kHz) and speech perception in noise (SPIN) in the best-aided condition.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>One hundred and one patients (53 male, 48 female; mean age 60.4 years, range: 18 to 88 years) were included, of which 72 completed all questionnaires. The mean HUI-3 score (0.50; SD ±0.31) indicated severe disability. The mean utility scores for the Dutch EQ-5D-5L (mean 0.73; SD ±0.25) were lower than the mean reference values. The mean DHI score of 37.86 (SD ±25.72) indicated a moderate self-perceived handicap. The mean OSQ score (2.63; SD ±0.91) was lower compared with previous studies, indicating lower symptom severity. Regarding the correlation between hearing impairment and HRQoL, higher SPIN scores were associated with a decrease in HRQoL (p < 0.05) using the HUI-3 and the EQ-5D-5L. However, for the DHI and OSQ, no significant difference was detected for either the unaided pure-tone average (p > 0.05) or the best-aided SPIN (p > 0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>HRQoL is significantly reduced in patients with BVP, as evidenced by both generic and disease-specific instruments, with these patients experiencing a range of disability from moderate to severe. Furthermore, difficulties in understanding speech in noise impose an additional burden on HRQoL, a factor that can be identified through the HUI-3 and EQ-5D assessments.</p>","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144746010","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}

{"title":"Daily-Life Fatigue Among Adolescents Who Are Hard of Hearing: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study.","authors":"Erik J Jorgensen, Megan Fear, Connor Kaminski, Ryan W McCreery, Allison Ocel, Elizabeth A Walker","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001705","DOIUrl":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001705","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Objectives: &lt;/strong&gt;Studies using retrospective questionnaires have suggested that children, adolescents, and adults who are hard of hearing may be more fatigued than their peers with typical hearing, though the effects of hearing loss severity and hearing loss interventions on fatigue are unclear. The purpose of this preliminary study was to closely examine the relationship among hearing loss, hearing aid use, and fatigue in a small sample of adolescents using ecological momentary assessment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Design: &lt;/strong&gt;Ten adolescents with typical hearing and 10 adolescents who are hard of hearing completed ecological momentary assessments on a smartphone across a 1-week sampling period. Most participants completed two sessions, one in the summer and one in the school year. Participants were asked to take eight assessments a day, 2 hours apart. The assessments asked participants to report on their momentary fatigue as well as their hearing aid use, listening environment, and listening activity. Last, hearing loss severity among participants who are hard of hearing was quantified using unaided Speech Intelligibility Indices.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;Compliance on the ecological momentary assessments was high. Participants completed, on average, 47 and 54 of the requested 56 ecological momentary assessments in the summer and school year, respectively. Overall, there were no differences in fatigue between our samples of adolescents with typical hearing and adolescents who are hard of hearing. Adolescents with typical hearing reported greater fatigue in the school year than they did in the summer, while adolescents who are hard of hearing reported greater fatigue in the summer than in the school year. However, among adolescents who are hard of hearing, session, hearing loss severity, and hearing aid use moderated fatigue, with a complex relationship observed between hearing aid use, unaided Speech Intelligibility Index, and session. Hearing aid use results in lower ratings of fatigue for adolescents with less hearing loss, with larger effects in the summer. All adolescents showed increasing but nonlinear trajectories of fatigue across the day, with lowest fatigue in the middle of the day. The increase in fatigue across the day was less steep in the summer and for adolescents who are hard of hearing. All adolescents reported greater fatigue when listening in background noise, but the size of this effect did not differ between groups. Fatigue did not differ depending on listening activity.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions: &lt;/strong&gt;In contrast to expectations, mean fatigue in our sample of adolescents who are hard of hearing was not greater than that reported by our sample of adolescents with typical hearing. This may simply reflect our limited sample size and the wide variability of fatigue in those with hearing loss. In addition, within our sample, fatigue effects may have been moderated by hearing aid use, particularly for those ado","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12313263/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144746009","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}

{"title":"The WHAM Study: Socio-Emotional Well-being Effects of Hearing Aid Use and Mediation Through Improved Hearing Ability.","authors":"Lotte A Jansen, Marieke F van Wier, Birgit I Lissenberg-Witte, Cas Smits, Sophia E Kramer","doi":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001700","DOIUrl":"10.1097/AUD.0000000000001700","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Objectives: &lt;/strong&gt;Hearing impairment can negatively impact socio-emotional well-being. While hearing aids (HA) may improve hearing ability, communication, social participation, and emotional well-being, longitudinal studies are scarce and evidence quality is low. This longitudinal study examines the associations between (research question [RQ] 1) HA uptake and socio-emotional well-being, mediation by self-perceived hearing disability, and differences between subgroups, (RQ2) frequency of HA use (daily number of hours) and socio-emotional well-being, and (RQ3) duration of HA use (years of use) and socio-emotional well-being.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Design: &lt;/strong&gt;Data from October 2006 to January 2024 from the Netherlands Longitudinal Study on Hearing were used for this study. Every 5 yrs, participants were invited to complete an online digits-in-noise hearing test and survey, which included variables on HA use, psychosocial health, tinnitus, hyperacusis, and self-perceived hearing disability. For RQs 1 and 2, cumulative data from three 5-yr intervals (baseline [T0] to 5-yr follow-up [T1], T1-T2, and T2-T3) was compiled, based on eligibility for a HA at the beginning of the studied time interval but not using it at that time and either reporting HA use (HA uptake) or no HA use (no HA uptake) at follow-up and frequency of use at follow-up. Differences between those who adopted a HA versus those who did not were examined while controlling for pre-(non)uptake socio-emotional outcomes. After applying exclusion criteria, the final samples included n = 281 unique participants for RQ1 and n = 280 for RQ2. For RQ3, participants with 5, 10, or 15 yrs of HA use were identified and analyzed to assess the impact of long-term use, with n = 180 unique participants in the final dataset. Outcomes assessed for each RQ were depression, anxiety, distress, somatization, social loneliness, emotional loneliness, and total loneliness. Gamma regression models with generalized estimating equations were performed to analyze all RQs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;Approximately 87% of participants were ≤65 yrs of age at T0. Among individuals without tinnitus, HA uptake was significantly associated with lower depression scores ( p &lt; 0.05). Among those aged &gt;65 yrs, HA uptake was significantly associated with lower total loneliness scores. No significant associations were found between HA uptake and anxiety, somatization, distress, and emotional loneliness. Self-perceived hearing disability did not mediate the relationship between HA uptake and socio-emotional well-being outcomes. No significant associations between the duration of HA use and socio-emotional well-being outcomes were found. Frequency of HA use was not significantly associated with any outcome except somatization, where using a HA for 1 to 4 hrs per day was significantly associated with lower somatization scores.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions: &lt;/strong&gt;This longitudinal study contributes valuable evidence to","PeriodicalId":55172,"journal":{"name":"Ear and Hearing","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144709983","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}