Speech Comprehension Test and Hearing Aid Selection

Abstract

There are several methods such as Pure Tone Audiometry and Speech Discrimination Tests, to examine auditory function of the patients with hearing loss. These tests do not necessarily measure auditory faculty of the patients with hearing loss in daily life.Recently we have contrived “speech comprehension test” which examines how those with hearing loss can understand what other people say. Voices other than as noises to the test.The results are as follows:1) Some differences in degrees of effectiveness of hearing aid were recognized. The differences cannot be distinguished by the ordinary speech-discrimination test through 67 AB List.2) High level of effectiveness was attained when a person suffering from conductive deafness, used the bone-conductive hearing aid.3) The patients with hearing loss who showed little differences in understanding human speeches in the conventional tests, indicated larger differences in this test.4) In the large S/N field, the patients with hearing aids have great difficulty in hearing in comparison with the normal persons.