Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 15, 2025
Assessment of Audio-Tactile Sensory Substitution Training in Participants with Profound Deafness Using the Event-Related Potential Technique
Published on: September 7, 2022
Behavioral and Hemodynamic Changes Following Dichotic Training in Patients with Neurological Deficits of the Auditory
Trey Cline1, Nicole Colgrove1, Matthew Bush1
1Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky.
Background:
Dichotic listening occurs when one attends to different acoustical messages presented simultaneously to both ears. This is important for understanding speech in compromised listening situations, such as background noise. Deficits in dichotic listening can be remediated by participating in auditory training. We present two patients with binaural integration deficits who underwent dichotic interaural intensity difference (DIID) training.
Purpose:
The purpose of this investigation is to demonstrate improvement of dichotic listening deficits following DIID training in neurological patients seen clinically for hearing issues.
Research Design:
This was a case series utilizing a pre- and posttreatment design.
Study Sample:
This case series utilized two female participants who demonstrated binaural integration deficits during an auditory processing evaluation.
Intervention:
The participants underwent a pretraining auditory processing evaluation and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants then underwent 12, 30-minute DIID training sessions followed by posttreatment auditory processing evaluations and fMRI.
Data Collection And Analysis:
Data was collected at the pretreatment appointment and then immediately following the completion of the training.
Results:
Each patient demonstrated varying degrees of improvement on the posttreatment assessment. Case 1 showed significant improvement on the Speech-in-Noise-Revised (SPIN-R) test. fMRI showed changes in activation patterns following training. Case 2 demonstrated improved scores on the Dichotic Digits Test and SPIN-R and increased activation of the calcarine sulcus following training.
Conclusion:
Dichotic training can be an efficacious treatment for binaural integration deficits and may show evidence of improving speech understanding in noise. This case series demonstrates a promising therapy to help patients improve auditory function by improving dichotic listening skills.
