Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 11, 2026
Systematic Hearing Performance Evaluation Process for Adolescents with Cochlear Implantation at Early Ages
Published on: March 24, 2023
Effects of microphone placement and directionality on hearing-in-noise abilities in school-aged cochlear implant
Amanda M Griffin1,2, David Faller1, Lauralyn Chetwynd1
1Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Enhancement, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Objectives:
The current study investigated the effects of processor microphone placement, microphone directionality, and remote microphone (RM) use on hearing-in-noise abilities in pediatric cochlear implant (CI) users and interactions among those technologies.
Methods:
The signal-to-noise ratio required for 50%-correct recognition (SNR-50) was measured in twenty-five bilateral CI recipients using the R-SPACE in a repeated-measures design.
Results:
For Cochlear users, behind-the-ear (BTE) microphone placement with directional settings produced better SNR-50 scores than BTE in an omnidirectional setting (Omni), but performance with an off-the-ear (OTE) placement with directional settings was not different from OTE Omni. For Advanced Bionics users, performance was better with BTE and in-the-ear (ITE) placements than OTE, and performance was better with directional microphones than without. For both manufacturers, best performance was achieved with RM.
Discussion:
Microphone placement can have an effect on hearing-in-noise abilities, but it is moderated by microphone directionality and RM usage. SNR-50 can be improved through optimizing microphone placement and directionality, but the largest gains were obtained through use of RM.
Conclusion:
The impact of microphone placement depends on manufacturer and the use of directional and remote microphones. Findings support continued use of RM for pediatric CI users to improve hearing-in-noise.
