Development and preliminary verification of a mandarin-based hearing-aid fitting strategy
Journal
PLoS ONE
Journal Volume
8
Journal Issue
11
Date Issued
2013
Author(s)
Abstract
Objective: The purpose of this study was to design and to verify a new hearing-aid fitting strategy (Aescu HRL-1) based on the acoustic features of Mandarin. The subjective and objective outcomes were compared to those fitted with NAL-NL1 (National Acoustic Laboratory Non-Linear, version1) in Mandarin-speaking hearing-aid users. Design: Fifteen subjects with sensorineural hearing loss participated in this preliminary study. Each subject wore a pair of four-channel hearing aids fitted with the Aescu HRL-1 and NAL-NL1 prescriptions alternatively for 1 month. Objective and subjective tests including the Mandarin Monosyllable Recognition Test (MMRT), Mandarin Hearing in Noise Test (MHINT), International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA), and a sound-quality questionnaire were used to evaluate the performance of the two prescriptions. Results: The mean MMRT scores were 79.9% and 81.1% for NAL-NL1 and Aescu HRL-1 respectively. They are not statistically different. The corresponding MHINT signal-to-noise ratios were 0.87 and 0.85 dB, also, no significant difference was found between these two strategies. However, in subjective questionnaires, overall, the sound-quality and IOI-HA scores were higher for Aescu HRL-1. Conclusions: The speech recognition performance based on Aescu HRL-1 is as good as that of NAL-NL1 for Mandarin-speaking hearing-aid users. Moreover, the subjects generally responded that Aescu HRL-1 provides a more natural, richer, and better sound quality than does NAL-NL1. ? 2013 Lai et al.
SDGs
Other Subjects
acoustic technology; adult; aged; article; auditory system examination; clinical article; clinical evaluation; comparative study; female; hearing aid; human; International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids; language; male; Mandarin Hearing in Noise Test; Mandarin Monosyllable Recognition Test; outcome assessment; perception deafness; process design; process development; quality control; questionnaire; scoring system; signal noise ratio; sound analysis; speech discrimination; validation process; auditory threshold; hearing; language; middle aged; physiology; reproducibility; sound; young adult; Adult; Aged; Auditory Threshold; Female; Hearing Aids; Humans; Language; Loudness Perception; Male; Middle Aged; Questionnaires; Reproducibility of Results; Signal-To-Noise Ratio; Sound; Young Adult
Publisher
Public Library of Science
Type
journal article