Speech Intelligibility In Noise Research Articles

Speech discrimination with separated signal sources and sound localization with speech stimuli : Learning effects and reproducibility

Binaural hearing enables better speech comprehension in noisy environments and is necessary for acoustic spatial orientation. This study investigates speech discrimination in noise with separated signal sources and measures sound localization. The aim was to study characteristics and reproducibility of two selected measurement techniques which seem to be suitable for description of the aforementioned aspects of binaural hearing. Speech reception thresholds (SRT) in noise and test-retest reliability were collected from 55normal-hearing adults for aspatial setup of loudspeakers with angles of ± 45° and ± 90° using the Oldenburg sentence test. The investigations of sound localization were conducted in asemicircle and fullcircle setup (7 and 12 equidistant loudspeakers). SRT (S-45N45: -14.1 dB SNR; S45N-45: -16.4 dB SNR; S0N90: -13.1 dB SNR; S0N-90: -13.4 dB SNR) and test-retest reliability (4 to 6 dB SNR) were collected for speech intelligibility in noise with separated signals. The procedural learning effect for this setup could only be mitigated with 120 training sentences. Significantly smaller SRT values, resulting in better speech discrimination, were found for the test situation of the right compared to the left ear. RMS values could be gathered for sound localization in the semicircle (1,9°) as well as in the fullcircle setup (11,1°). Better results were obtained in the retest of the fullcircle setup. When using the Oldenburg sentence test in noise with spatially separated signals, it is mandatory to perform atraining session of 120sentences in order to minimize the procedural learning effect. Ear-specific SRT values for speech discrimination in noise with separated signal sources are required, which is probably due to the right-ear advantage. Atraining is recommended for sound localization in the fullcircle setup.

The Benefit of Bimodal Hearing and Beamforming for Cochlear Implant Users

Introduction: Cochlear implantation is the standard treatment for severe to profound hearing loss. While cochlear implant (CI) users can communicate effectively in quiet environments, speech understanding in noise remains challenging. Bimodal hearing, combining a CI in one ear and a hearing aid (HA) in the other, has shown advantages over unilateral electrical hearing, especially for speech understanding in noisy conditions. Beamforming is a technique used to improve speech understanding in noise by detecting sound direction and enhancing frontal (speech) sounds while attenuating background noise. One specific beamformer, Stereozoom, combines signals from microphones in both ears to create a focused beam toward the front resulting in a binaural beamformer (BB), in order to improve speech intelligibility in noise for bilateral and bimodal CI users. Methods: A prospective crossover study involving 17 bimodal CI users was conducted, and participants were tested with various device configurations (CI, HA, CI + HA) with and without BB. Speech recognition testing with the Dutch/Flemish matrix test was performed in a sound-attenuated booth with diffuse noise to simulate realistic listening conditions. Results: The results showed a statistically significant benefit of bimodal hearing over the CI configuration and showed a statistical significant benefit of BB for the CI and CI + HA configuration. The benefit of BB in the HA configuration was not statistically significant probably due to the higher variance. The benefit of BB in the three configurations did not differ statistically significant. Conclusion: In conclusion, bimodal hearing offers advantages for speech understanding in noise for CI users. BB provides a benefit in various device configurations, leading to improved speech intelligibility when speech comes from the front in challenging listening environments.

Effect of a processing delay between direct and delayed sound in simulated open fit hearing aids on speech intelligibility in noise.

Subjects with mild to moderate hearing loss today often receive hearing aids (HA) with open-fitting (OF). In OF, direct sound reaches the eardrums with minimal damping. Due to the required processing delay in digital HA, the amplified HA sound follows some milliseconds later. This process occurs in both ears symmetrically in bilateral HA provision and is likely to have no or minor detrimental effect on binaural hearing. However, the delayed and amplified sound are only present in one ear in cases of unilateral hearing loss provided with one HA. This processing alters interaural timing differences in the resulting ear signals. In the present study, an experiment with normal-hearing subjects to investigate speech intelligibility in noise with direct and delayed sound was performed to mimic unilateral and bilateral HA provision with OF. The outcomes reveal that these delays affect speech reception thresholds (SRT) in the unilateral OF simulation when presenting speech and noise from different spatial directions. A significant decrease in the median SRT from -18.1 to -14.7 dB SNR is observed when typical HA processing delays are applied. On the other hand, SRT was independent of the delay between direct and delayed sound in the bilateral OF simulation. The significant effect emphasizes the development of rapid processing algorithms for unilateral HA provision.

Amplitude Compression for Preventing Rollover at Above-Conversational Speech Levels.

Hearing aids provide nonlinear amplification to improve speech audibility and loudness perception. While more audibility typically increases speech intelligibility at low levels, the same is not true for above-conversational levels, where decreases in intelligibility ("rollover") can occur. In a previous study, we found rollover in speech intelligibility measurements made in quiet for 35 out of 74 test ears with a hearing loss. Furthermore, we found rollover occurrence in quiet to be associated with poorer speech intelligibility in noise as measured with linear amplification. Here, we retested 16 participants with rollover with three amplitude-compression settings. Two were designed to prevent rollover by applying slow- or fast-acting compression with a 5:1 compression ratio around the "sweet spot," that is, the area in an individual performance-intensity function with high intelligibility and listening comfort. The third, reference setting used gains and compression ratios prescribed by the "National Acoustic Laboratories Non-Linear 1" rule. Speech intelligibility was assessed in quiet and in noise. Pairwise preference judgments were also collected. For speech levels of 70 dB SPL and above, slow-acting sweet-spot compression gave better intelligibility in quiet and noise than the reference setting. Additionally, the participants clearly preferred slow-acting sweet-spot compression over the other settings. At lower levels, the three settings gave comparable speech intelligibility, and the participants preferred the reference setting over both sweet-spot settings. Overall, these results suggest that, for listeners with rollover, slow-acting sweet-spot compression is beneficial at 70 dB SPL and above, while at lower levels clinically established gain targets are more suited.

Differences in speech intelligibility in noise under Ambisonics-based virtual acoustic environments with varying sound recording/rendering methods

The present study investigates the differences in speech intelligibility in noise under Ambisonics-based virtual acoustic environments realised by various recording/rendering methods. Subjective listening tests were conducted under four different implementations of Ambisonics-based virtual acoustic environments reproducing a seminar room using different modes of recording and rendering techniques. For recording, both first and higher order Ambisonics microphone arrays were utilised while for rendering headphones (binaural) and 32-ch loudspeaker array were used. The results were also compared against the data collected in the real room. The experimental results suggest the speech intelligibility under virtual acoustic environments does not differ significantly regardless of the modes of recording and rendering, however it was generally lower than that in their original room. The effect of spatial release from masking was also observed under the virtual acoustic environments when either/both the higher order Ambisonics microphone array or/and the 32-channel loudspeaker array were utilised for the implementation, however, it was limited to the case when the speech source was located close to the listener.

Spatial audio reproduction for studying second language speech perception in varying acoustic environments

This paper introduces recent attempts of utilising spatial audio reproduction in linguistic studies and discusses challenges of the new methodology. Thanks to its high reproducibility of arbitrary acoustic environments in a controlled laboratory setting, spatial audio reproduction has a potential to address the difficulties of examining participants with different language background that have to be recruited in geographically separated locations. A case study that investigated the difference in speech intelligibility in noise between first and second language listeners in varying acoustic environments is reported with its experimental results. The paper then attempts to verify the validity of the methodology using spatial audio reproduction by comparing experimental results conducted in real and virtual rooms.

The effects of temporal cues, point-light displays, and faces on speech identification and listening effort.

Among the most robust findings in speech research is that the presence of a talking face improves the intelligibility of spoken language. Talking faces supplement the auditory signal by providing fine phonetic cues based on the placement of the articulators, as well as temporal cues to when speech is occurring. In this study, we varied the amount of information contained in the visual signal, ranging from temporal information alone to a natural talking face. Participants were presented with spoken sentences in energetic or informational masking in four different visual conditions: audio-only, a modulating circle providing temporal cues to salient features of the speech, a digitally rendered point-light display showing lip movement, and a natural talking face. We assessed both sentence identification accuracy and self-reported listening effort. Audiovisual benefit for intelligibility was observed for the natural face in both informational and energetic masking, but the digitally rendered point-light display only provided benefit in energetic masking. Intelligibility for speech accompanied by the modulating circle did not differ from the audio-only conditions in either masker type. Thus, the temporal cues used here were insufficient to improve speech intelligibility in noise, but some types of digital point-light displays may contain enough phonetic detail to produce modest improvements in speech identification in noise.

Paediatric amplification protocol, based on individualization of the hearing aids’ fitting parameters

Background. There are no paediatric amplification clinical practice guidelines in Russia at the moment. At the same time the technological progress of hearing aids (HA), new algorithms and functions requires the objective evidence of safety and effectiveness for the hearing impaired children. For these reasons paediatric amplification algorithm was developed by the authors. Besides the standard procedures the algorithm includes an objective electroacoustic verification of the output parameters and separate HA functions. The research is devoted to the investigation of the protocols advantages. 
 Aim development and evaluation the paediatric amplification protocol, based on objective electroacoustic verification of the output and functions of hearing aid. 
 Materials and Methods. Prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial was performed. Two protocols effectiveness were compared. Standard protocol (control group) is based on the subjective verification. Experimental protocol suggests an electroacoustic verification of the output and different HA functions: feedback cancellation, amplitude and frequency compression, microphone directionality, digital noise reduction (experimental group). Each group included 56 children (317 years old) with permanent hearing loss from moderate to moderately-severe degree. Initial amplification was performed for each child; the results were estimated in 1, 3 and 6 months using PEACH and LIFE questionnaires, speech audiometry and phoneme testing. DataLogging and first fitting appointment time were also estimated. 
 Results. In preschool-age children of the experimental group post-amplification PEACH results were 6% better than in controls. In school-age children (LIFE questionnaire) results were 11% better comparing with control group. Speech intelligibility in quiet was 3.1% (p 0.05) higher for pre-schoolers in the experimental group and 9.3% (p 0.01) higher for school-age children comparing with control group. Speech intelligibility in noise was higher in experimental group than in control: 7.8% (p 0.05) in pre-schoolers and 13% (p 0.01) for school-age children. Phoneme recognition was better in experimental group as well: 4.5% (p 0.05) in pre-schoolers and 9.8% (p 0.01) in school-agers than in control group. After HA fitting following an experimental protocol DataLogging time was 1112% longer in comparison with standard procedure. On the other hand, experimental protocol took in average 1.5 hours for the first fitting and standard protocol 53 minutes. 
 Conclusions. Protocol of paediatric amplification based on objective electroacoustic verification of HA output and functions allows to significantly increase the effectiveness of hearing rehabilitation in children.

A Transparent Mask and Clear Speech Benefit Speech Intelligibility in Individuals With Hearing Loss.

The purpose of the study is to investigate the impacts of a surgical mask and a transparent mask on audio-only and audiovisual speech intelligibility in noise (i.e., 0 dB signal-to-noise ratio) in individuals with mild-to-profound hearing loss. The study also examined if individuals with hearing loss can benefit from using a transparent mask and clear speech for speech understanding in noise. Thirty-one individuals with hearing loss (from 22 to 74 years old) completed keyword identification tasks to measure face-masked speech intelligibility in noise. A mixed-effects logistic regression model was used to examine the effects of face masks (no mask, transparent mask, surgical mask), presentation modes (audio only, audiovisual), speaking styles (conversational, clear), noise type (speech-shaped noise [SSN], four-talker babble [4-T babble]), hearing groups (mild hearing loss [MHL], greater than MHL: GHL), and their interactions on binary accuracy of keyword identification. In the audio-only mode, the GHL group showed reduced speech intelligibility regardless of other factors, whereas the MHL group showed decreased speech intelligibility for the transparent mask more than for the surgical mask. The use of a transparent mask was advantageous for both hearing loss groups. Clear speech remediated the detrimental effects of face masks on speech intelligibility in noise. Both groups tended to perform better in SSN versus 4-T babble. The findings indicate that, when using face masks, either a transparent mask or a surgical mask negatively affects speech understanding in noise for individuals with hearing loss. Using a transparent mask and clear speech could be a potential solution to improve speech intelligibility in communication with face masks in noise.

Improving intelligibility of dysarthric speech in noise for listeners with hearing loss

Noise reduction strategies based on time-frequency masking have been shown to provide substantial improvements in the intelligibility of speech in noise for both listeners with normal and impaired hearing. Previous studies on this type of noise reduction have involved intact, well-articulated speech spoken by healthy talkers (i.e., not disordered speech). However, the prevalence of speech disorders such as dysarthria is substantial, particularly in the aging population, which is highly susceptible to the impacts of hearing loss. We recently demonstrated the considerable impact of background noise on dysarthric speech as well as the effectiveness of time-frequency masking to improve the intelligibility of this disordered speech in noise for listeners with normal hearing (Borrie et al., 2023). Here, we present data on the feasibility of time-frequency masking to increase the intelligibility of dysarthric speech for listeners with sensorineural hearing impairment. Preliminary results indicate that the Ideal Quantized Mask, a method of time-frequency masking, significantly improves percent words correct scores of dysarthric speech in noise for listeners with hearing loss. Results will be discussed in relation to the specific impact of background noise on dysarthric speech, and the relationship between sensorineural hearing loss and dysarthric speech.

Subjective speech enhancement performance of a hearable with transparency and spatial frequency-weighted dereverberation

Preserving natural binaural cues combined with directionality and robust dereverberation is crucial for successful sound enhancement via hearables. In this study, we subjectively evaluate the performance of a real-time hearable prototype that aims to enhance frontal speech and spatial cues in complex environments using a new dereverberation algorithm and acoustic transparency. Our real-time algorithm exploits the spatial frequency-weighted coherence-to-diffuse ratio estimated between the conchal microphones and produces directional binaural gains using a Wiener filter for sound enhancement. The new hearable system can be customized or adapted to a given environment for optimum performance in different frequency bands and preserves natural binaural cues for all individuals by symmetrical spatial filtering. We use the real-time prototype to evaluate the perceived speech intelligibility in noise by a Matrix framework for normal-hearing subjects in a reverberant classroom. We also use a multi-stimulus with hidden reference and anchor-like framework to evaluate the perceived speech quality and listening comfort of several stimuli simulated for HATS in the same environment. Results show that speech intelligibility and listening comfort in noise can be significantly improved for the real-time hearable using the new algorithm with optimized parameters compared with several state-of-the-art coherence-based algorithms implemented in a similar device.

Long-Term Outcome of Cochlear Implantation in Children With Congenital, Perilingual, and Postlingual Single-Sided Deafness.

We investigated the long-term outcomes of children with single-sided deafness (SSD) after cochlear implant (CI) surgery, during and after rehabilitation, and compared the results of children with congenital, perilingual, and postlingual SSD. We evaluated the impact of SSD at age at onset and duration of deafness on their performance. Thirty-six children with SSD treated with CI participated in the study: 20 had congenital, seven perilingual (defined: >0 to 4 years), and nine had postlingual deafness (defined as >4 years of age). Their outcome with CI were measured on both subjective and objective scales: duration of device use, speech intelligibility in noise and in quiet, bilateral hearing and localization ability, quality of life and hearing, presence and loudness of tinnitus, and hearing ability of the better hearing ear. After a mean follow-up time of 4.75 years, 32 of the 36 children used their CI on a regular basis. The remaining four children were nonusers. These children had congenital SSD and were older than three years at the time of CI surgery. Overall, for congenital/perilingual and postlingual SSD, speech intelligibility in noise and the Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ) speech subscore were significantly improved, as were their subjective and objective localization ability and hearing-related quality of life. Children with postlingual SSD benefited from the CI with regard to speech intelligibility, SSQ speech/spatial/total score, and localization error, and children with congenital SSD showed better results with a short duration of deafness of less than 3 years compared with those with a longer deafness period. Cochlear implantation is a successful treatment for children with congenital/perilingual or postlingual SSD. Results largely differed with respect to the onset and duration of deafness, and better outcomes were achieved by children with postlingual SSD and with a short duration of deafness. Our data also confirmed that children with congenital SSD should be implanted with a CI within three years of age.

Effect of noise on speech intelligibility and cognitive skills by ages

ABSTRACT Research on older adults who have difficulty understanding speech initially focused on the peripheral auditory system, however, recent studies have emphasized the importance of cognitive factors. Previous studies typically examined older individuals with hearing loss, making it difficult to discern the importance of memory capacity on speech recognition and memory tests generally were performed in quiet environment. This study aimed to determine the speech intelligibility in noise, evaluate short-term and working memory capacities in a noisy environment as an innovative approach in young and old individuals with normal hearing, and examine the relationship between them. The study included 25 young (18–40 years) and 21 elderly (55–70 years) individuals with normal hearing. Turkish matrix sentence test was conducted as a speech intelligibility in noise test. Short-term memory was measured with forward digit span task; working memory was measured with backward digit span task. These tasks were performed in quiet and noisy environments. The elderly group had lower results in the forward (p < 0.01) and backward (p = 0.011) digit span tasks in a noisy environment than those in the quiet environment. Memory tasks in two listening conditions and Turkish matrix sentence test results were lower in the elderly group than the younger group (p < 0.01). There was a moderate negative correlation between Turkish matrix sentence test results and forward digit span tasks in the elderly group (p = 0.013). The results suggest that short-term and working memory capacities decline with age and that older individuals’ abilities are more affected by noise.

Signal Transparency of Remote Microphone Technology in Pediatric Bone Conduction Device Users

Introduction: Competing noise in the environment negatively affects speech intelligibility, particularly when listening at a distance. This is especially true for children with hearing loss in classroom environments where the signal-to-noise ratio is often poor. Remote microphone technology has been shown to be highly beneficial at improving the signal-to-noise ratio in hearing device users. Children with bone conduction devices, however, often must rely on indirect transmission of the acoustic signal for commonly used classroom-based remote microphone listening (e.g., digital adaptive microphone) which may negatively affect speech intelligibility. There are no studies on the effectiveness of using a relay method of signal delivery using remote microphone technology to improve speech intelligibility in adverse listening environments in bone conduction device users. Methods: Nine children with irresolvable conductive hearing loss and 12 adult controls with normal hearing were included for study. Controls were bilaterally plugged to simulate conductive hearing loss. All testing was conducted using the Cochlear™ Baha® 5 standard processor coupled with either the Cochlear™ Mini Microphone 2+ digital remote microphone or the Phonak Roger™ adaptive digital remote microphone. Speech intelligibility in noise was evaluated in the (1) bone conduction device processor alone, (2) bone conduction device + personal remote microphone, and (3) bone conduction device + personal remote microphone + adaptive digital remote microphone listening conditions at −10 dB, 0 dB, and +5 dB signal-to-noise ratios. Results and Conclusions: Speech intelligibility in noise improved significantly in the bone conduction device + personal remote microphone condition over the bone conduction device alone, demonstrating significant benefit for listening at poor signal-to-noise ratios in children with conductive hearing loss using bone conduction devices with personal remote microphone use. Experimental findings demonstrate poor signal transparency when using the relay method. Coupling of the adaptive digital remote microphone technology to the personal remote microphone negatively affects signal transparency, and no hearing in noise improvements are observed. Significant gains in speech intelligibility are consistently observed for direct streaming methods and are confirmed in adult controls. Behavioral findings are supported by objective verification of the signal transparency between the remote microphone and the bone conduction device.

A State-of-the-Art Method for Preserving Residual Hearing During Cochlear Implant Surgery.

The developments in surgical techniques and cochlear implant (CI) electrode design have expanded the indications for CI treatment. Currently, patients with high-frequency hearing loss may benefit from CIs when low-frequency residual hearing can be preserved, as this enables combined electric-acoustic stimulation (EAS). The possible benefits of EAS include, for example, improved sound quality, music perception, and speech intelligibility in noise. The risks of inner ear trauma and a deterioration or even complete loss of residual hearing vary according to the surgical technique and the type of electrode array used. Short, lateral-wall electrodes with shallower angular insertion depths have demonstrated higher rates of hearing preservation than longer electrodes. The very slow insertion of the electrode array through the round window of the cochlea contributes to insertion atraumaticity and, thus, may lead to favorable hearing preservation results. However, residual hearing can be lost even after an atraumatic insertion. Electrocochleography (ECochG) can be used to monitor inner ear hair cell function during the insertion of the electrode. Several investigators have demonstrated that the ECochG responses during surgery may predict postoperative hearing preservation results. In a recent study, we correlated the patients' subjective hearing perception with simultaneously recorded intracochlear ECochG responses during the insertion. This is the first report evaluating the association between intraoperative ECochG responses and hearing perception in a subject undergoing cochlear implantation under local anesthesia without sedation. The combination of intraoperative ECochG responses with the patient's real-time feedback to sound stimuli has excellent sensitivity for the intraoperative monitoring of cochlear function. This paper presents a state-of-the-art method for the preservation of residual hearing during CI surgery. We describe this treatment procedure with the special consideration of performing the surgery under local anesthesia, which makes it feasible for monitoring the patient's hearing during the insertion of the electrode array.

Delta-band neural envelope tracking predicts speech intelligibility in noise in preschoolers

Behavioral tests are currently the gold standard in measuring speech intelligibility. However, these tests can be difficult to administer in young children due to factors such as motivation, linguistic knowledge and cognitive skills. It has been shown that measures of neural envelope tracking can be used to predict speech intelligibility and overcome these issues. However, its potential as an objective measure for speech intelligibility in noise remains to be investigated in preschool children. Here, we evaluated neural envelope tracking as a function of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in 14 5-year-old children. We examined EEG responses to natural, continuous speech presented at different SNRs ranging from −8 (very difficult) to 8 dB SNR (very easy). As expected delta band (0.5-4 Hz) tracking increased with increasing stimulus SNR. However, this increase was not strictly monotonic as neural tracking reached a plateau between 0 and 4 dB SNR, similarly to the behavioral speech intelligibility outcomes. These findings indicate that neural tracking in the delta band remains stable, as long as the acoustical degradation of the speech signal does not reflect significant changes in speech intelligibility. Theta band tracking (4-8 Hz), on the other hand, was found to be drastically reduced and more easily affected by noise in children, making it less reliable as a measure of speech intelligibility. By contrast, neural envelope tracking in the delta band was directly associated with behavioral measures of speech intelligibility. This suggests that neural envelope tracking in the delta band is a valuable tool for evaluating speech-in-noise intelligibility in preschoolers, highlighting its potential as an objective measure of speech in difficult-to-test populations.

Toward a Listening Training Paradigm: Evaluation in Normal-Hearing Young and Middle-Aged Adults.

Adults' most common complaint relates to understanding speech in noisy environments. Hearing aids can compensate for sensory loss but do not restore hearing to normal. Listening training has the potential to partially remediate these problems. In this study, we propose and evaluate a Flemish version of a listening training paradigm, which involves the use of cognitive control as well as auditory perception. The paradigm entails a discrimination task where participants are cued to attend to one of two concurrent talkers with target speakers randomly varying between a female and a male voice. We evaluate learning effects, different scenarios, and masking types. In total, 70 young and 54 middle-aged adults participated in this study. Each adult performed one or more conditions. Participants' hearing was screened before participation, all middle-aged adults passed a cognitive screening task. Analyses indicated learning effects across scenarios that were similar in terms of speech intelligibility. Our results indicated better speech intelligibility when the female speaker was the target, but speech intelligibility did not differ when the target was the male speaker. An unintelligible masker noise results in worse speech intelligibility than a competing talker masker. Our results suggest that listeners could use an intensity cue to identify and/or select the target speaker when presented at a lower signal to noise ratio (SNR). Error analysis suggested higher cognitive control demands when the target and masker were presented at similar levels (i.e., around 0 dB SNR). The addition of independent trials with the intensity of target and masker reversed improved speech intelligibility. Inhibitory control, but not task switching, was reliably correlated with listening performance. The proposed paradigm turned out to be feasible and practicable, demonstrating its potential for training speech intelligibility in noise. We believe that this training paradigm can generate real-life benefits including for persons with hearing loss. This latter application awaits future evaluation.

Effect of video gaming on some central auditory processing abilities in school aged children, cross sectional study

Objectives The effect of video games playing was variable in the literature. On one hand, it leads to boosting brain function in response speed, concentration, attention and spatial cognition, on the other hand, a certain type of games have negative effects on the cognition and proper processing of the central nervous system. In The best of the authors knowledge, there is no study investigated the effects of video gaming on central auditory processing in school-aged children, so the objective of this work is to study the effect of video gaming on some central auditory processing abilities in school-aged children. Methods 50 children aged 6–12 years old, playing video games > 2 h/d, were subjected to psychometric, basic audiological evaluation, history of mobile phone use and Central Auditory Processing (CAP) Disorders. CAP evaluation included; Speech Intelligibility In Noise (SPIN), Arabic Dichotic Digits (DD), Memory and Auditory Vigilance tests. Results The highest percentage of abnormality in CAP abilities was in selective attention ability followed by sequential memory besides the negative correlation with duration (hours) of video gaming use per day. Conclusion Video gaming has a negative impact on CAP abilities in children, particularly auditory attention and memory.

Results of the second “clarity” enhancement challenge for hearing devices

The clarity enhancement challenges (CECs) seek to facilitate development of novel processing techniques for improving the intelligibility of speech in noise for hearing-aid users through a series of signal-processing challenges. Each challenge provides entrants with a set of stimuli for development and testing of their algorithms. The performance of the algorithms is assessed using objective measures of speech intelligibility and subjective measures conducted with a panel of hearing-impaired listeners. CEC2 featured more complex listening environments than CEC1 with multiple interfering sound sources (speech, music, household appliance sounds) within a simulated living-room environment at signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) from −12 to + 4 dB. In addition, head rotation towards the target speech was introduced. Target speech came from a new dataset of 10,000 different English sentences spoken by 40 actors speaking 250 sentences each (Graetzer S et al., 2022 Data in Brief 41, 107961). The objective assessment was provided by HASPI (Kates &amp; Arehart, 2021 Speech Comm 131, 35–46). All 18 entries achieved substantial improvements in HASPI, averaging 0.55 across all systems and SNRs. Improvements were greatest (averaging 0.61) for SNRs between −8 and 0 dB. The best-performing system achieved HASPI scores above 0.9 for all SNRs. Listening-test data will be reported.

Effect of central auditory processing disorders on contralateral routing of offside signals (CROS) hearing aids performance

Objectives The aim of this study was to assess central auditory processing (CAP) tests in patients with single sided deafness (SSD)and to study the effect of central auditory processing disorders(CAPD) on the contralateral routing of signal (CROS) hearing aid performance in these subjects. Design This case-control study was performed in Audiovestibular unit, ENT Department. The study included 20 children with SSD and 20 healthy control children. All participants were subjected to CAP tests including pitch pattern sequence (PPS), gap in noise (GIN) and speech intelligibility in noise (SPIN) tests. The child was fitted with CROS and evaluated by SPIN test and bern benefit in single - sided deafness (BBSS) questionnaire. Results There were lower SPIN, PPS, and GIN total correct scores in children with SSD than the control group. The group with normal central test battery has higher SPIN score and significant performance with questionnaire when fitted with CROS. Conclusions Children with normal central auditory processing test battery performed better when fitted with CROS than those with abnormal test battery.