Chitnahalli Shankarnarayan Vanaja

Background: Cortical auditory-evoked potentials (CAEPs) measure the electrical activity from the auditory cortex in response to sound. CAEPs are used in clinics for the assessment of benefit from hearing devices such as hearing aids and cochlear implants. It is also used for monitoring the maturation of the auditory cortex. Variability in the acquisition and stimulus parameters used for recording leads to variations in the reported latency, amplitude and morphology of CAEPs. Thus, there is a need to probe more regarding the latency and amplitude of CAEPs in typically developing children. The present study was designed to compare CAEPs of adults and children in terms of amplitude and latency. Method: This study was conducted on 30 adult participants in the age range of 18–30 years and 30 children in the age range of 5 to 8 years. All the participants had hearing sensitivity within normal limits. CAEPs were recorded from Cz referenced to the mastoid and Fz referenced mastoid. Results: The amplitude of P1 was significantly greater in children, and there was a reduction in the amplitude and latency values of P1 with age. The occurrence rate of N1, P2 and N2 increased with age. Latency of all the waves decreased with age. Conclusion: P1 is the major and consistent peak in children. Age-specific norms are required while using CAEPs in the assessment and rehabilitation of persons with hearing impairment.

Meniere's disease (MD) affects 0.2% to 0.5% of the global population, with regional variations. Standard diagnostic methods, including the glycerol test and EcochG, show variable sensitivity and specificity, highlighting the need for more reliable diagnostic approaches. This study aims to investigate latency differences in wave V of the Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) by comparing waveforms for rarefaction and condensation clicks to identify MD. The study analyzed latency differences in wave V of the ABR using condensation and rarefaction clicks in 15 ears diagnosed with MD. The control groups included 10 ears with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) [non-MD ears] and 20 ears with normal hearing sensitivity. MD patients exhibited a significant wave V latency shift between rarefaction and condensation stimuli, suggesting altered cochlear dynamics due to endolymphatic hydrops. No such shift was observed in normal hearing or SNHL ears. Patients with definite MD showed a greater latency difference than those with probable MD, possibly reflecting varying endolymphatic pressure. These findings suggest that ABR testing with opposite polarity stimuli could serve as an adjunctive diagnostic tool for MD, particularly in differentiating the severity of the condition but further research is needed to validate these preliminary.

Purpose: This study aimed to compare hearing thresholds estimated using three different electrophysiological measures – auditory brainstem response (ABR) for narrow band level specific chirp (NB LS chirp ABR), ABR for tone bursts (TBABR), and auditory steady state responses (NB chirp ASSR) for NB chirp stimuli. Materials and Methods: A repeated-measures study design with purposive sampling was used to assess 27 ears with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and 26 ears with normal hearing. The age of the participants ranged from 18 to 70 years. NB chirp ASSR, TBABR, and NB LS chirp ABR were recorded to obtain electrophysiological hearing thresholds. The difference between electrophysiological threshold and audiometric threshold (referred to as D), obtained for all electrophysiological tests, was compared. Also, audiometric thresholds predicted from electrophysiological tests were compared with thresholds obtained through pure-tone audiometry. Results: Friedman analysis of variance revealed no significant difference between the D obtained for NB chirp ASSR and NB LS chirp ABR. A significant difference was observed between the D obtained for TBABR and NB chirp ASSR as well as NB LS chirp ABR. Bland–Altman analysis revealed that least bias, as well as the strongest correlation between audiometric threshold and predicted audiometric threshold, was obtained for NB LS chirp ABR. Conclusion: NB LS chirp-evoked ABR is a good test for estimating hearing thresholds in individuals with SNHL.

Introduction: Older adults with normal hearing sensitivity also struggle to understand speech in background noise. Although temporal resolution is essential for understanding speech in noise, there are equivocal results on the correlation between gap detection ability and speech perception in noise. This study investigates the relationship of speech perception in noise with gap detection ability in quiet as well as gap detection ability in the presence of speech babble in older adults. Method: Data were collected from 30 young adults (18–30 years) to 30 older adults (50–70 years) whose hearing thresholds were <25 dB HL. Temporal processing was assessed using the monaural auditory fusion test in quiet and in the presence of speech babble, and signal-to-noise ratio 50 was established using MISHA-Random Adaptive Marathi sentences in noise (M-RAMSIN) test. Results: The performance of older adults was significantly poorer than those of young adults on all the tests. There was no significant correlation between gap detection ability in quiet and speech perception in noise. However, there was a significant moderate to strong correlation between gap detection ability in the presence of speech babble and speech perception in noise. Conclusion: This study supports an age-related decline in temporal processing, which is evident in the poorer performance of older adults. This study also highlights the possible role of temporal resolution ability and speech perception in noise.

Purpose: The study aimed to investigate the effect of stimulus type on extratympanic electrocochleography (ECochG). The study specifically compared the amplitude of summating potential (SP); action potential (AP); SP/AP amplitude ratio; and SP/AP area ratio obtained for clicks, broadband (BB), and narrowband (NB) chirps. Materials and Methods: Extratympanic ECochG was recorded using TIPtrode electrodes for clicks, BB chirps, and NB chirps of 500, 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz from participants with normal hearing. The SP amplitude, AP amplitude, SP/AP amplitude ratio, and SP/AP area ratio obtained for different stimuli were compared. Results: The results revealed that the type of stimuli affected the amplitude of SP and AP. The detection rate of SP was highest, with clicks followed by BB chirps. Among the NB chirps of different frequencies, 4000 Hz NB chirps had the highest detection rate for SP. The amplitude of SP was maximum for 500 Hz NB chirp. However, there was no effect of the type of stimuli on the SP/AP amplitude ratio and area ratio. Conclusion: BB chirps are better than NB chirps for detecting SP and AP. There is no need for separate normative data for SP/AP amplitude and area ratio for clicks, BB, chirps, and NB chirps.

The objective of this study was to investigate perception of affective prosody in a group of children diagnosed as having auditory processing disorders (APDs) and compare their performance with those of typically developing children. Auditory Linguistic Integration test in Marathi, which assesses affective prosody, was administered on 159 children in the age range of 5–7 years. Among them, 53 children had APD, and 106 children did not have APD. The results of the study revealed that the perception of affective prosody was significantly poor in children with APD when compared to typically developing children. The results of the study suggested that a subset of children with APD may show difficulty in the perception of affective prosody. Further studies need to be carried out to explore the factors that can affect the perception of affective prosody in children with APD.

Purpose: Misophonia is a sound tolerance disorder condition in certain sounds that trigger intense emotional or physiological responses. While some persons may experience misophonia, a few patients suffer from misophonia. However, there is a dearth of literature on audiological assessment and management of persons with misophonia. The purpose of this report is to discuss the assessment of misophonia and highlight the management option that helped a patient with misophonia. Method: A case study of a 26-year-old woman with the complaint of decreased tolerance to specific sounds affecting quality of life is reported. Audiological assessment differentiated misophonia from hyperacusis. Management included retraining counseling as well as desensitization and habituation therapy based on the principles described by P. J. Jastreboff and Jastreboff (2014). A misophonia questionnaire was administered at regular intervals to monitor the effectiveness of therapy. Results: A detailed case history and audiological evaluations including pure-tone audiogram and Johnson Hyperacusis Index revealed the presence of misophonia. The patient benefitted from intervention, and the scores of the misophonia questionnaire indicated a decrease in the severity of the problem. Conclusions: It is important to differentially diagnose misophonia and hyperacusis in persons with sound tolerance disorders. Retraining counseling as well as desensitization and habituation therapy can help patients who suffer from misophonia.