Investigation of hearing aid users' speech understanding in noise and their spectral-temporal resolution skills

• Published in: Journal of otology Vol. 18; no. 3; pp. 146 - 151
• Main Authors: Kılıç, Mert, Kara, Eyyup
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: China Elsevier B.V 01.07.2023; Chinese PLA General Hospital; Elsevier
• Subjects: Hearing aids; Spectral resolution; Speech in noise; Speech intelligibility; Temporal resolution; Hearing aids; Temporal resolution; Speech in noise; Spectral resolution; Speech intelligibility
• ISSN: 1672-2930; 2524-1753
• DOI: 10.1016/j.joto.2023.04.001

Our study aims to compare speech understanding in noise and spectral- temporal resolution skills with regard to the degree of hearing loss, age, hearing aid use experience and gender of hearing aid users. Our study included sixty-eight hearing aid users aged between 40-70 years, with bilateral mild and moderate symmetrical sensorineural hearing loss. Random gap detection test, Turkish matrix test and spectral-temporally modulated ripple test were implemented on the participants with bilateral hearing aids. The test results acquired were compared statistically according to different variables and the correlations were examined. No statistically significant differences were observed for speech-in-noise recognition, spectral-temporal resolution among older and younger adults in hearing aid users (p>0.05). There wasn’t found a statistically significant difference among test outcomes as regards different hearing loss degrees (p>0.05). Higher performances were obtained in terms of temporal resolution in male participants and participants with more hearing aid use experience (p<0.05). Significant correlations were obtained between the results of speech-in-noise recognition, temporal resolution and spectral resolution tests performed with hearing aids (p<0.05). Our study findings emphasized the importance of regular hearing aid use and it showed that some auditory skills can be improved with hearing aids. Observation of correlations among the speech-in-noise recognition, temporal resolution and spectral resolution tests have revealed that these skills should be evaluated as a whole to maximize the patient's communication abilities. •When evaluating hearing aid users, both spectral and temporal decoding abilities and peripheral hearing should be assessed.•When evaluating auditory skills, factors of age, gender, degree of hearing loss, and aid experience should be considered.•To optimize the communication abilities of aid wearers, a comprehensive evaluation of various auditory skills is necessary.•Proper hearing aid fitting and consistent use can benefit individuals with hearing loss by enhancing their auditory skills.