Sentence identification in noise and hearing-handicap questionnaires

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Hearing Science

Background:

• Hearing impairment significantly impacts communication and quality of life.
• Accurate assessment of hearing handicap is crucial for effective intervention.
• Existing tools for evaluating hearing handicap require validation against objective measures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of two hearing handicap questionnaires against speech-in-noise tests.
• To investigate the correlation between questionnaire scores, speech recognition abilities, and pure-tone hearing sensitivity.
• To determine the relationship between subjective hearing handicap and objective audiological measures.

Main Methods:

• Thirty participants with varying degrees of hearing loss (normal, mixed, sensorineural) were evaluated.
• Two hearing handicap questionnaires were administered: Social Hearing-Handicap Index and Hearing Measurement Scale.
• Three sentence-in-noise tests were used: CID sentences and BKB sentences in continuous and modulated noise.

Main Results:

• Significant correlations were observed between sentence identification scores and both hearing handicap questionnaires.
• Questionnaire items specifically addressing speech understanding showed the strongest correlations.
• Both questionnaire results and sentence identification scores were highly correlated with pure-tone hearing sensitivity.

Conclusions:

• Hearing handicap questionnaires and speech-in-noise tests are reliable measures of hearing impairment.
• These tools effectively capture the impact of hearing loss on speech understanding.
• Objective audiological measures, including pure-tone sensitivity, are strongly linked to subjective hearing handicap assessments.