Auditory and Vestibular Research
Volume:29 Issue: 3, Summer 2020

In noisy environments, two types of masking including energetic masking (EM) and informational masking (IM) occur. EM results from the spectral overlap of the target and maskers on the basilar membrane, while IM occurs at higher level. This paper aimed to review the concept of IM in terms of historical perspective and definitions, the important cues for releasing from it, age-related effects and its neural basis.

The data from psychoacoustic, behavioral, and neuro-imaging studies were reviewed and discussed in order to provide an overall image of IM. According to these studies, it seems that perceptual segregation between the target and maskers is the most important cues for releasing from IM. This process takes place simply and without any effort in adults with normal hearing; however, it does not occur easily in children, elderly people and those with impaired hearing. Moreover, it seems that both top-down and bottom-up processing are involved in IM formation.

Since IM leads to failure in selection of auditory objects and prevents the individual from auditory scene analysis, understanding the IM concept leads to a better knowledge of speech perception in noise.

Tinnitus can affect daily life. The evaluation of the affected aspects of life quality is highly dependent on the subjects’perception. Self-report questionnaires have been used to identify these affected aspects. In the present study, the relationship between the Persian versions of tinnitus functional index (TFI-P) and tinnitus handicap inventory (THI-P) was investigated.

This is a comparative cross-sectional study conducted on 28 hearing-impaired and 27 normal hearing subjects with tinnitus in aged 18−60 years selected according to the inclusion criteria. Both groups completed the TFI-P and THI-P.

There was a significant and relatively strong relationship between the total scores of THI-P and TFI-P (r = 0.65) and also between the emotional subscale of TFI-P and the catastrophic subscale of THI-P (r = 0.73). Moreover, there was a moderate relationship between age factor and total score of TFI-P (r = −0.32), and between the cognitive subscale of TFI-P and age (r = 0.40). However, no significant difference was found between hearing-impaired and normal hearing subjects in terms of the total score and subscale scores of TFI-P. Furthermore, we found a significant difference between female and male subjects in terms of the relaxation subscale of TFI-P, and between dura tion of tinnitus and the quality of life subscale (r = 0.33).

The scores of the THI-P and TFI-P questionnaires are related to each other and they can be used for measuring the negative effects of tinnitus.

Spatial hearing plays an important role in listening in complex hearing situations, including contributing to localization, lateralization, spatial release from masking, distance estimation from a sound source, and perceiving a signal in noise. Questionnaires are useful tools for assessing spatial processing disorder in adults. Given the high prevalence of this disorder in children and that the extent of children’s ability in completing questionnaires is not clear, this study aimed to evaluate the response validity of children to the Persian translation of the child version of the Speech, Spatial and Quality of Hearing Scale (PSSQ-Ch).

The child version of the SSQ was translated into Persian and cross-culturally adapted. The final version was administered to 150 children (6 to 12 years of age) with normal hearing. The children’s response validity was evaluated qualitatively and the percentage of valid responses calculated for each of 7 age groups.

Across the three sections, the percentage of valid responses for children under age 10 was minimum 44.4% and maximum 83.3%, and the mode was around 60%. There was no child in the under-10 age group who answered all questions validly. The response validity of children aged 10 or more was higher with a minimum of 93.3%, a maximum of 100% and mode of 100%.

Children ≥ 10 years can reliably respond to the PSSQ-Ch. The response validity of children below 10 years is low; therefore, this questionnaire cannot be used as a self-assessment questionnaire in children below age 10.

Auditory processing disorder (APD), as a sensory processing defect, can be comorbid with other disorders such as learning disability (LD). LD has shown a greater likelihood of comorbidity with APD. Therefore, the deficits associated with APD needs to be identified in children with LD.
Given the high likelihood of APD comorbidity in children with LD, this study aimed to screen for APD in 8−12-year-old children with LD using the Persian auditory processing domains questionnaire (APDQ-P).

In this cross-sectional study, APDQ-P was administered on 250 normal children with a mean (SD) age of 10 (1.48) years old (153 girls and 97 boys), and 110 children with LD with a mean (SD) age of 9 (1.92) years old (40 girls and 61 boys). After obtaining the cut-off point, the scores of the two groups were compared by a t-test in 5 age categories. Finally, we calculated the number of children with suspected APD using APDQ-P.

There was a significant difference between the scores of LD and normal group in all subscales including auditory processing, language and attention. About 75% of LD children failed in auditory processing, 86% in attention skills, and 82% in language skills.

A significant proportion of children with LD were suspected of APD, which could be indicative of a high likelihood of comorbidity of APD in children with LD. More accurate identification of the degree and type of APD in these children requires central auditory diagnostic tests.

Amblyaudia is a diagnostic issue in central auditory processing disorder (CAPD), which is characterized by asymmetry in dichotic listening performance. This disorder negatively affects the academic performance of children by influencing their information processing, reading, attention, etc. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of the dichotic interaural intensity difference (DIID) training on all auditory processing categories of the Buffalo Model using the Persian staggered spondaic word (P-SSW) test.

The study was conducted on 17 children (11 girls and 6 boys) aged 8−12 years old diagnosed with amblyaudia. All children were first evaluated by the P-SSW test, and then participated in 10−12 sessions of the DIID training. The P-SSW test was taken again after completing the training program in order to evaluate the training effect.

The paired t-test results showed a significant reduction in the mean scores of decoding (p < 0.001) and tolerance fading memory (p < 0.004) categories as well as the total mean score of P-SSW test after training. The Wilcoxon test also showed the effect of this training on the integration category (p < 0.025). The McNemar test, however, showed no statistically significant effect of the DIID training on the organization category.

The DIID training causes significant improvement in some central auditory processing categories of the Buffalo Model, including decoding, tolerance fading memory and integration.

Auditory rehabilitation is an essential step after hearing aid fitting for children with hearing loss. The aim of this study was to evaluate the auditory rehabilitation results based on auditory verbal therapy approach in children with severe to profound sensory-neural hearing loss. Auditory verbal therapy is a popular approach for rehabilitation children with hearing loss.

This is a retrospective study that evaluates the results of auditory rehabilitation of 19 children with severe to profound hearing loss. Most children were about three years old at the beginning of the rehabilitation process. They were received bilateral hearing aid and auditory rehabilitation based on auditory verbal therapy (AVT) approach. Each case progress was measured by Newsha developmental scale.

All of the children showed progress during the AVT program (p < 0.05). The Newsha developmental scale showed that hearing and receptive language categories had more progress. The progress was similar between male and female participants and there was no difference in all of categories (p > 0.05).

The AVT approach is beneficial for rehabilitation of older children with bilateral severe to profound sensory-neural hearing loss. The progress was observed in all categories of Newsha developmental scale.

The majority of auditory processing guidelines use questionnaires or checklists as screening tools. The Buffalo Model Questionnaire (BMQ) is a well-known and sensitive questionnaire to be used along with the Buffalo Model diagnostic test battery. The revision for the Buffalo Model Questionnaire-Revised (BMQ-R) implemented to improve the readability of the BMQ, reducing the completion time and increasing the ease of scoring for the audiologist. The purpose of this study was to develop and investigate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of BMQ-R (P-BMQ-R).

After cross-cultural adaptation of the questionnaire, the validity and reliability were determined, also the norms for the children in age ranges between 7 and 12 were generated.

Findings of this study revealed strong content and face validity of the questionnaire. Scores of the test and retest were correlated (r > 0.9) strongly and positively based on Spearman correlation coefficient.

The Persian version of BMQ-R (P-BMQ-R) is a valid and reliable tool and is suitable to use in everyday practice.