Effective Duration of Auditory Training for Speech Perception in Hearing-Impaired Listeners: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis to determine the effective duration of auditory training for hearing aid users and cochlear implant users and to identify factors that influence the effectiveness of auditory training.Methods: We searched literature published from January 1996 to August 2021 in Pubmed, Web of Science, Embase and Cochrane Library. A total of 24 studies that met the selection criteria were systematically reviewed and analyzed through meta-analysis. Standardized mean differences and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.Results: The overall meta-analysis results for auditory training showed an effect size of -0.833, and the effect size was larger in “more than 600 minutes of auditory training” compared to “less than 600 minutes”. There was no statistically significant difference in effect size during follow-up observation after the completion of auditory training, with an effect size of 0.057 (95% CI: -0.113-0.112, <i>p</i>=0.988). Subgroup analysis showed that the effect size was larger in the “children” group than in the “adult” group. The effect size of auditory training was larger when the auditory training and measurement conditions were the same.Conclusions: Auditory training can improve speech perception in individuals wearing HA and/or CI, and the training effect was shown to be maintained even after the completion of auditory training. In addition, it was found that the longer the duration of auditory training (more than 10 hours), the greater the training effect.