Modulation Detection, Modulation Masking, and Speech Understanding in Noise in the Elderly

1992 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 1410-1421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail A. Takahashi ◽  
Sid P. Bacon
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Background Noise ◽  
Modulation Frequency ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Broadband Noise ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
Detection Sensitivity ◽  
Speech Understanding ◽  
Modulation Detection

Temporal processing of suprathreshold sounds was examined in a group of young normalhearing subjects (mean age of 26.0 years), and in three groups of older subjects (mean ages of 54.3, 64.8, and 72.2 years) with normal hearing or mild sensorineural hearing loss. Three experiments were performed. In the first experiment (modulation detection), subjects were asked to detect sinusoidal amplitude modulation (SAM) of a broadband noise, for modulation frequencies ranging from 2–1024 Hz. In the second experiment (modulation masking), the task was to detect a SAM signal (modulation frequency of 8 Hz) in the presence of a 100%-modulated SAM masker. Masker modulation frequency ranged from 2–64 Hz. In the final experiment, speech understanding was measured as a function of signal-to-noise ratio in both an unmodulated background noise and in a SAM background noise that had a modulation frequency of 8 Hz and a modulation depth of 100%. Except for a very modest correlation between age and modulation detection sensitivity at low modulation frequencies, there were no significant effects of age once the effect of hearing loss was taken into account. The results of the experiments suggest, however, that subjects with even a mild sensorineural hearing loss may have difficulty with a modulation masking task, and may not understand speech as well as normal-hearing subjects do in a modulated noise background.

scholarly journals Effect of sinusoidally amplitude modulated broadband noise stimuli on stream segregation in individuals with sensorineural hearing loss

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jawahar Antony P ◽  
Animesh Barman
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Amplitude Modulation ◽  
Modulation Frequency ◽  
Study Groups ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Broadband Noise ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
Stream Segregation ◽  
Temporal Cues

Background and Aim: Auditory stream segre­gation is a phenomenon that splits sounds into different streams. The temporal cues that contri­bute for stream segregation have been previ­ously studied in normal hearing people. In peo­ple with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL), the cues for temporal envelope coding is not usually affected, while the temporal fine structure cues are affected. These two temporal cues depend on the amplitude modulation frequency. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of sin­usoidal amplitude modulated (SAM) broadband noises on stream segregation in individuals with SNHL. Methods: Thirty normal hearing subjects and 30 subjects with mild to moderate bilateral SNHL participated in the study. Two experi­ments were performed; in the first experiment, the AB sequence of broadband SAM stimuli was presented, while in the second experiment, only B sequence was presented. A low (16 Hz) and a high (256 kHz) standard modulation fre­quency were used in these experiments. The subjects were asked to find the irregularities in the rhythmic sequence. Results: Both the study groups could identify the irregularities similarly in both the experi­ments. The minimum cumulative delay was sli­ghtly higher in the SNHL group. Conclusion: It is suggested that the temporal cues provided by the broadband SAM noises for low and high standard modulation frequencies were not used for stream segregation by either normal hearing subjects or those with SNHL. Keywords: Stream segregation; sinusoidal amplitude modulation; sensorineural hearing loss

Masking of Speech in Young and Elderly Listeners With Hearing Loss

1994 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 655-661 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela E. Souza ◽  
Christopher W. Turner
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Speech Recognition ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Background Noise ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
Masking Noise ◽  
Speech Spectrum ◽  
Specific Factors ◽  
High Pass

This study examined the contributions of various properties of background noise to the speech recognition difficulties experienced by young and elderly listeners with hearing loss. Three groups of subjects participated: young listeners with normal hearing, young listeners with sensorineural hearing loss, and elderly listeners with sensorineural hearing loss. Sensitivity thresholds up to 4000 Hz of the young and elderly groups of listeners with hearing loss were closely matched, and a high-pass masking noise was added to minimize the contributions of high-frequency (above 4000 Hz) thresholds, which were not closely matched. Speech recognition scores for monosyllables were obtained in the high-pass noise alone and in three noise backgrounds. The latter consisted of high-pass noise plus one of three maskers: speechspectrum noise, speech-spectrum noise temporally modulated by the envelope of multi-talker babble, and multi-talker babble. For all conditions, the groups with hearing impairment consistently scored lower than the group with normal hearing. Although there was a trend toward poorer speech-recognition scores as the masker condition more closely resembled the speech babble, the effect of masker condition was not statistically significant. There was no interaction between group and condition, implying that listeners with normal hearing and listeners with hearing loss are affected similarly by the type of background noise when the long-term spectrum of the masker is held constant. A significant effect of age was not observed. In addition, masked thresholds for pure tones in the presence of the speech-spectrum masker were not different for the young and elderly listeners with hearing loss. These results suggest that, for both steady-state and modulated background noises, difficulties in speech recognition for monosyllables are due primarily, and perhaps exclusively, to the presence of sensorineural hearing loss itself, and not to age-specific factors.

scholarly journals Hearing impairment is associated with enhanced neural tracking of the speech envelope

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lien Decruy ◽  
Jonas Vanthornhout ◽  
Tom Francart
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Impairment ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Hearing Impaired ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
List Type ◽  
Speech Understanding ◽  
Envelope Tracking ◽  
Additional Increase

AbstractElevated hearing thresholds in hearing impaired adults are usually compensated by providing amplification through a hearing aid. In spite of restoring hearing sensitivity, difficulties with understanding speech in noisy environments often remain. One main reason is that sensorineural hearing loss not only causes loss of audibility but also other deficits, including peripheral distortion but also central temporal processing deficits. To investigate the neural consequences of hearing impairment in the brain underlying speech-in-noise difficulties, we compared EEG responses to natural speech of 14 hearing impaired adults with those of 14 age-matched normal-hearing adults. We measured neural envelope tracking to sentences and a story masked by different levels of a stationary noise or competing talker. Despite their sensorineural hearing loss, hearing impaired adults showed higher neural envelope tracking of the target than the competing talker, similar to their normal-hearing peers. Furthermore, hearing impairment was related to an additional increase in neural envelope tracking of the target talker, suggesting that hearing impaired adults may have an enhanced sensitivity to envelope modulations or require a larger differential tracking of target versus competing talker to neurally segregate speech from noise. Lastly, both normal-hearing and hearing impaired participants showed an increase in neural envelope tracking with increasing speech understanding. Hence, our results open avenues towards new clinical applications, such as neuro-steered prostheses as well as objective and automatic measurements of speech understanding performance.HighlightsAdults with hearing impairment can neurally segregate speech from background noiseHearing loss is related to enhanced neural envelope tracking of the target talkerNeural envelope tracking has potential to objectively measure speech understanding

scholarly journals Hearing impairment is associated with enhanced neural tracking of the speech envelope

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lien Decruy ◽  
Jonas Vanthornhout ◽  
Tom Francart
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Impairment ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Hearing Impaired ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
List Type ◽  
Speech Understanding ◽  
Envelope Tracking ◽  
Additional Increase

AbstractElevated hearing thresholds in hearing impaired adults are usually compensated by providing amplification through a hearing aid. In spite of restoring hearing sensitivity, difficulties with understanding speech in noisy environments often remain. One main reason is that sensorineural hearing loss not only causes loss of audibility but also other deficits, including peripheral distortion but also central temporal processing deficits. To investigate the neural consequences of hearing impairment in the brain underlying speech-in-noise difficulties, we compared EEG responses to natural speech of 14 hearing impaired adults with those of 14 age-matched normal-hearing adults. We measured neural envelope tracking to sentences and a story masked by different levels of a stationary noise or competing talker. Despite their sensorineural hearing loss, hearing impaired adults showed higher neural envelope tracking of the target than the competing talker, similar to their normal-hearing peers. Furthermore, hearing impairment was related to an additional increase in neural envelope tracking of the target talker, suggesting that hearing impaired adults may have an enhanced sensitivity to envelope modulations or require a larger differential tracking of target versus competing talker to neurally segregate speech from noise. Lastly, both normal-hearing and hearing impaired participants showed an increase in neural envelope tracking with increasing speech understanding. Hence, our results open avenues towards new clinical applications, such as neuro-steered prostheses as well as objective and automatic measurements of speech understanding performance.HighlightsAdults with hearing impairment can neurally segregate speech from background noiseHearing loss is related to enhanced neural envelope tracking of the target talkerNeural envelope tracking has potential to objectively measure speech understanding

The Onset–Offset N1–P2 Auditory Evoked Response in Individuals With High-Frequency Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Responses to Broadband Noise

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Jennifer E. Gonzalez ◽  
Frank E. Musiek
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Stimulus Duration ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Broadband Noise ◽  
Evoked Response ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
Auditory Evoked Response

Purpose Clinical use of electrophysiologic measures has been limited to use of brief stimuli to evoke responses. While brief stimuli elicit onset responses in individuals with normal hearing and normal central auditory nervous system (CANS) function, responses represent the integrity of a fraction of the mainly excitatory central auditory neurons. Longer stimuli could provide information regarding excitatory and inhibitory CANS function. Our goal was to measure the onset–offset N1–P2 auditory evoked response in subjects with normal hearing and subjects with moderate high-frequency sensorineural hearing loss (HFSNHL) to determine whether the response can be measured in individuals with moderate HFSNHL and, if so, whether waveform components differ between participant groups. Method Waveforms were obtained from 10 participants with normal hearing and seven participants with HFSNHL aged 40–67 years using 2,000-ms broadband noise stimuli with 40-ms rise–fall times presented at 50 dB SL referenced to stimulus threshold. Amplitudes and latencies were analyzed via repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). N1 and P2 onset latencies were compared to offset counterparts via repeated-measures ANOVA after subtracting 2,000 ms from the offset latencies to account for stimulus duration. Offset-to-onset trough-to-peak amplitude ratios between groups were compared using a one-way ANOVA. Results Responses were evoked from all participants. There were no differences between participant groups for the waveform components measured. Response × Participant Group interactions were not significant. Offset N1–P2 latencies were significantly shorter than onset counterparts after adjusting for stimulus duration (normal hearing: 43 ms shorter; HFSNHL: 47 ms shorter). Conclusions Onset–offset N1–P2 responses were resistant to moderate HFSNHL. It is likely that the onset was elicited by the presentation of a sound in silence and the offset by the change in stimulus envelope from plateau to fall, suggesting an excitatory onset response and an inhibitory-influenced offset response. Results indicated this protocol can be used to investigate CANS function in individuals with moderate HFSNHL. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14669007

scholarly journals How Do Age and Hearing Loss Impact Spectral Envelope Perception?

2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (9) ◽  
pp. 2376-2385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erol J. Ozmeral ◽  
Ann C. Eddins ◽  
David A. Eddins
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Spectral Resolution ◽  
Modulation Frequency ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Frequency Resolution ◽  
Spectral Envelope ◽  
Detection Thresholds ◽  
Spectral Modulation ◽  
Modulation Detection ◽  
Moderate Hearing Loss

Purpose The goal was to evaluate the potential effects of increasing hearing loss and advancing age on spectral envelope perception. Method Spectral modulation detection was measured as a function of spectral modulation frequency from 0.5 to 8.0 cycles/octave. The spectral modulation task involved discrimination of a noise carrier (3 octaves wide from 400 to 3200 Hz) with a flat spectral envelope from a noise having a sinusoidal spectral envelope across a logarithmic audio frequency scale. Spectral modulation transfer functions (SMTFs; modulation threshold vs. modulation frequency) were computed and compared 4 listener groups: young normal hearing, older normal hearing, older with mild hearing loss, and older with moderate hearing loss. Estimates of the internal spectral contrast were obtained by computing excitation patterns. Results SMTFs for young listeners with normal hearing were bandpass with a minimum modulation detection threshold at 2 cycles/octave, and older listeners with normal hearing were remarkably similar to those of the young listeners. SMTFs for older listeners with mild and moderate hearing loss had a low-pass rather than a bandpass shape. Excitation patterns revealed that limited spectral resolution dictated modulation detection thresholds at high but not low spectral modulation frequencies. Even when factoring out (presumed) differences in frequency resolution among groups, the spectral envelope perception was worse for the group with moderate hearing loss than the other 3 groups. Conclusions The spectral envelope perception as measured by spectral modulation detection thresholds is compromised by hearing loss at higher spectral modulation frequencies, consistent with predictions of reduced spectral resolution known to accompany sensorineural hearing loss. Spectral envelope perception is not negatively impacted by advancing age at any spectral modulation frequency between 0.5 and 8.0 cycles/octave.

scholarly journals Quality of Life in Children with Sensorineural Hearing Loss

2019 ◽  
Vol 162 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evette A. Ronner ◽  
Liliya Benchetrit ◽  
Patricia Levesque ◽  
Razan A. Basonbul ◽  
Michael S. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing Loss ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Sensorineural Hearing ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Pedsql 4.0 ◽  
Hearing Device ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal

Objective To assess quality of life (QOL) in pediatric patients with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) with the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 (PedsQL 4.0) and the Hearing Environments and Reflection on Quality of Life 26 (HEAR-QL-26) and HEAR-QL-28 surveys. Study Design Prospective longitudinal study. Setting Tertiary care center. Subjects and Methods Surveys were administered to patients with SNHL (ages 2-18 years) from July 2016 to December 2018 at a multidisciplinary hearing loss clinic. Patients aged >7 years completed the HEAR-QL-26, HEAR-QL-28, and PedsQL 4.0 self-report tool, while parents completed the PedsQL 4.0 parent proxy report for children aged ≤7 years. Previously published data from children with normal hearing were used for controls. The independent t test was used for analysis. Results In our cohort of 100 patients, the mean age was 7.7 years (SD, 4.5): 62 participants had bilateral SNHL; 63 had mild to moderate SNHL; and 37 had severe to profound SNHL. Sixty-eight patients used a hearing device. Mean (SD) total survey scores for the PedsQL 4.0 (ages 2-7 and 8-18 years), HEAR-QL-26 (ages 7-12 years), and HEAR-QL-28 (ages 13-18 years) were 83.9 (14.0), 79.2 (11.1), 81.2 (9.8), and 77.5 (11.3), respectively. Mean QOL scores for patients with SNHL were significantly lower than those for controls on the basis of previously published normative data ( P < .0001). There was no significant difference in QOL between children with unilateral and bilateral SNHL or between children with SNHL who did and did not require a hearing device. Low statistical power due to small subgroup sizes limited our analysis. Conclusion It is feasible to collect QOL data from children with SNHL in a hearing loss clinic. Children with SNHL had significantly lower scores on validated QOL instruments when compared with peers with normal hearing.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document