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Earmoulds: some benefits from horn fitting.

N Burgess¹, D N Brooks

¹Regional Audiology Unit, Withington Hospital, Manchester, UK.

British Journal of Audiology

|October 1, 1991

Summary

New hearing aid earmoulds with a smooth horn design significantly improve high-frequency sound transmission. This enhances speech clarity and phoneme recognition for individuals with high-frequency hearing loss.

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Area of Science:

Audiology
Acoustics
Biomedical Engineering

Background:

Conventional hearing aid earmoulds have narrow bores that limit high-frequency sound transmission.
This limitation adversely affects speech perception, particularly phonemes with high-frequency components, in individuals with high-frequency hearing loss.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the efficacy of novel earmoulds featuring a smooth horn design compared to conventional earmoulds.
To assess the impact of earmould design on high-frequency audibility and speech recognition.

Main Methods:

Twenty-two subjects with high-frequency hearing loss participated.
Comparative testing involved conventional 1.9 mm tubing earmoulds versus 4 mm internal diameter horn earmoulds.
Methods included free-field Békésy audiometry, in-the-ear pressure measurements, and speech audiometry with AB word lists.

Main Results:

Subjective assessments indicated horn earmoulds were clearer, more natural, and acoustically comfortable.
Objective measurements (Békésy audiometry, pressure) showed increased gain in higher frequencies with horn earmoulds.
Improved recognition of phonemes, particularly fricatives and affricatives, was observed with the horn design.

Conclusions:

The smooth horn earmould design enhances high-frequency audibility and sound quality in hearing aids.
This innovative design offers a significant benefit for individuals experiencing moderate to severe high-frequency hearing loss.
The study suggests a potential improvement in speech perception and acoustic comfort through optimized earmould acoustics.

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