Schmidt, F.H.; Hocke, T.; Zhang, L.; Großmann, W.; Mlynski, R. Tone Decay Reconsidered: Preliminary Results of a Prospective Study in Hearing-Aid Users with Moderate to Severe Hearing Loss. J. Clin. Med.2024, 13, 500.
Schmidt, F.H.; Hocke, T.; Zhang, L.; Großmann, W.; Mlynski, R. Tone Decay Reconsidered: Preliminary Results of a Prospective Study in Hearing-Aid Users with Moderate to Severe Hearing Loss. J. Clin. Med. 2024, 13, 500.
Schmidt, F.H.; Hocke, T.; Zhang, L.; Großmann, W.; Mlynski, R. Tone Decay Reconsidered: Preliminary Results of a Prospective Study in Hearing-Aid Users with Moderate to Severe Hearing Loss. J. Clin. Med.2024, 13, 500.
Schmidt, F.H.; Hocke, T.; Zhang, L.; Großmann, W.; Mlynski, R. Tone Decay Reconsidered: Preliminary Results of a Prospective Study in Hearing-Aid Users with Moderate to Severe Hearing Loss. J. Clin. Med. 2024, 13, 500.
Abstract
Among hearing aid (HA) users, there is a considerable variability in word-recognition scores (WRS). This variability is most pronounced among individuals with moderately severe to severe hearing loss. The variability cannot be adequately explained by factors such as the pure-tone audiogram, audiogram type, or age. This prospective study was designed to investigate the relationship between tone decay (TD) and WRS in a group of HA users with corresponding pure-tone hearing loss. The study population included 22 patients with hearing loss between 50 and 80 dB HL. Aided WRS, unaided WRS and TD were assessed for both ears. TD was found to be frequency-dependent. TD and WRS were correlated, with up to R=–0.66. The TD test was revealed as a feasible method for explaining the variability in WRS among HA users with hearing loss below 80 dB. This may contribute to improved differential diagnostics. The TD test may thus offer a better understanding of the limitations of HA use in the context of cochlear implant candidacy assessment for HA users.
Keywords
tone decay; suprathreshold diagnostics; retrocochlear disorders; cochlear implant; hearing aid
Subject
Medicine and Pharmacology, Otolaryngology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
