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Suprathreshold auditory processing and speech perception in noise: hearing-impaired and normal-hearing listeners
Van Summers1, Matthew J Makashay, Sarah M Theodoroff
1Audiology and Speech Center, Scientific and Clinical Studies Section, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD 20889, USA. vsummers6@gmail.com
Journal of the American Academy of Audiology
|May 3, 2013
Summary
Hearing-impaired listeners
Area of Science:
- Auditory Neuroscience
- Speech Perception
- Psychoacoustics
Background:
- Suprathreshold distortions in auditory processing are linked to speech recognition difficulties in hearing-impaired (HI) individuals, particularly in noisy environments.
- Outer hair cell damage may reduce peripheral compression and frequency selectivity, impacting speech processing.
- Impaired access to temporal fine structure (TFS) information is also implicated in these deficits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between peripheral compression, frequency selectivity, TFS sensitivity, and speech recognition in HI listeners.
- To determine if processing distortions correlate more strongly with speech deficits in steady-state or modulated noise.
Main Methods:
- Tested normal-hearing (NH) and HI listeners on frequency selectivity, peripheral compression, and TFS sensitivity using specific psychoacoustic tasks.
- Assessed speech recognition in steady-state and modulated noise across various frequencies and signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs).
- Included 10 NH and 18 HI listeners, with age ranges of 36-80 and 58-87 years, respectively.
Main Results:
- Sensitivity to temporal fine structure (TFS) at 1 and 2 kHz significantly correlated with speech recognition scores in both noise types.
- Frequency selectivity and compression measures showed weaker associations with speech performance.
- Speech Intelligibility Index (SII) analyses revealed minimal audibility differences, suggesting distortions, not audibility, drive speech score variations.
Conclusions:
- Distorted processing of audible speech cues, particularly reduced TFS cue utilization, is a primary factor in speech recognition variability among HI listeners.
- The impact of TFS cues on speech scores was similar in steady-state and modulated noise.
- High-frequency hearing loss may be linked to processing distortions in lower-frequency regions, as speech recognition was independent of audibility after accounting for high-frequency sensitivity.
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