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Comparison of two methods for selecting minimum stimulation levels used in programming the Nucleus 22 cochlear
M W Skinner1, L K Holden, T A Holden
1Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA. skinnerm@msnotes.wustl.edu
Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research : JSLHR
|August 18, 1999
Summary
Raising stimulation levels in Nucleus 22 cochlear implants improved soft speech understanding for recipients using the SPEAK strategy. Participants preferred the raised level program, suggesting enhanced sound salience in daily use.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Cochlear implants aim to restore hearing by electrically stimulating the auditory nerve.
- The Nucleus 22 cochlear implant system uses the SPEAK speech coding strategy.
- Optimizing stimulation levels is crucial for speech perception in cochlear implant users.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if increasing minimum stimulation levels improves speech understanding, particularly for soft sounds, in Nucleus 22 cochlear implant recipients using the SPEAK strategy.
- To assess the impact of raised stimulation levels on speech recognition in quiet and noise.
- To determine participant preference for standard versus raised stimulation levels.
Main Methods:
- Eight postlinguistically deaf adults with Nucleus 22 cochlear implants participated.
- A 4-phase A1B1A2B2 crossover design was employed.
- Speech recognition was tested using Consonant-Vowel Nucleus-Consonant (CNC) words and sentences in noise at varying sound pressure levels (SPL).
Main Results:
- Significantly higher group mean scores were observed with the raised level program for words and phonemes at 50 and 60 dB SPL.
- Sentence recognition scores were significantly higher with the raised level program at 50 and 70 dB SPL.
- All participants preferred the raised level program for daily use.
Conclusions:
- A raised stimulation level program for Nucleus 22 cochlear implants can enhance the perception of soft speech sounds, making them more salient.
- The findings suggest potential benefits for improving everyday listening experiences for cochlear implant users.
- Further research is warranted to explore the applicability of this approach to other cochlear implant devices.