ABSTRACT
Objective The aim of the present study was to investigate the ability to perceive syllables phrases ,mono-syllabic words ,disyllabic words ,when using a CI and an HA in non -implanted ears (bimodal fitting) ,and the relationship be-tween aided thresholds in the HA ear and bimodal effectiveness .Methods Eighteen children who consistently used a bimodal fitting participated in the study .The loudness of speech in the HA ear matched that with implanted ear ,and the aided thresh-olds in the HA ear were obtained .The recognition rate of syllables phrases ,monosyllabic words ,and disyllabic words was tested under the aforementioned two modes in both the quiet and noisy backgrounds .Results The speech performance of children for monosyllabic words were 82 .67% ± 12 .23% ,83 .61% ± 12 .22% ,for disyllabic words 76 .00% ± 16 .13% ,78 .11% ± 14 .84% , for syllables phrases 60 .11% ± 17 .18% ,65 .43% ± 16 .76% ,with a CI alone or with bimodal fitting in a quiet environment ,re-spectively .In a noisy environment ,monosyllabic words were 75 .50% ± 14 .12% ,76 .83% ± 14 .15% ,and disyllabic words were 68 .22% ± 17 .15% ,77 .18% ± 16 .83% ,and syllables phrases were 49 .39% ± 19 .26% ,56 .33% ± 19 .55% .The results sug-gested that speech performance in a quiet or a noisy environment was significantly better with bimodal hearing than with a CI a-lone .All were statistically significant except the recognition rate of monosyllabic words in quiet background (P<0 .05) .Signifi-cant negative correlations were found between aided thresholds at 250 and 500 Hz ,and the bimodal advantages were noticeable for the some speeching perception .Conclusion Bimodal hearing enhances speech performance for deaf patients .The low -fre-quency residual hearing in the HA ear may play a major role in enhancing auditory and speech performance .
ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the prognostic factors relevant to sudden sensorineural hearing loss.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The internationally accepted standardized clinical research methods, unified design, and unified program were adopted to conduct the prospective clinical multi-center study. The sudden deafness patients between 18 to 65 years old, with the course of this disorder less than two weeks, and without any medical treatments were collected, and then, divided into four types according to the hearing curve: type A, acute sensorineural hearing loss in low tone frequencies; type B, acute sensorineural hearing loss in high tone frequencies; type C, acute sensorineural hearing loss in all frequencies; and type D, total deafness. The factors, in terms of age, gender, type of initial audiogram, time delay before the first visit, and severity of hearing loss, were included in the analyses.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A total of 1 024 cases with single side sudden deafness were collected in the study from 33 hospitals in China from August 2007 to October 2011, inclusive of for 492 males (48.05%) and 532 females (51.95%). The average age was (41.2 ± 12.8) years old. There were 553 cases (54.00%) in left ear, and 471 cases (46.00%) in right ear. The curative effects of different types were shown as follows: the type in low tone frequencies had the highest rate of 90.73%, the type in all frequencies was 82.59%; the type of total deafness was 70.29%; and the type in high tone frequencies had the lowest rate of 65.96%. It had significant difference of the effective rate between different types (χ(2) = 231.58, P = 0.000). Age, time delay before first visit, and severity of initial hearing loss were significantly correlated with hearing improvement.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Initial audiogram of SSNHL might predict hearing recovery. The young in age and a short time delay before starting treatment are positive prognostic factors for hearing recovery in SSNHL. The initial severity of hearing loss is negative prognostic factor of hearing recovery.</p>