Controlled (re)evaluation of the relationship between speech perception in noise and contralateral suppression of otoacoustic emissions.

In people with normal hearing (NH), speech perception in noise (SPIN) improves when the speech signal is presented not gated with noise but after a delay. The medial olivocochlear reflex (MOCR) was thought to be involved in the neural dynamic range adaptation (NDRA) responsible for this adaptive SPIN; however, some of the recent studies do not support this hypothesis and suggest that adaptive SPIN involves the NDRA to noise-level statistics, irrespective of MOCR activation. A plausible reason for this discrepancy could be the variations and limitations of the experimental designs used in different studies. Using a relatively controlled and comprehensive study design, this study attempts to verify whether a delay between the delivery of speech and the noise improves the SPIN and whether MOCR mediates such effects. The SPIN was estimated by measuring speech reception thresholds (SRT) in noise under simultaneous-onset and delayed-onset (noise precedes speech onset by 300 ms) conditions. The SPIN in both ears was independently examined for ipsilateral, contralateral, and bilateral noise in women with normal hearing (N = 18; age range, 18-25 years). Contralateral suppression of transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions (CSOAEs) was used to estimate the MOCR based cochlear gain reduction. Under all test conditions, SPIN was improved in delayed-onset than in simultaneous-onset conditions, and the mean improvement in the SRT ranged from 0.7±1.7 to 1.8±1.8 dB. No significant correlation was obtained between CSOAEs and the mean temporal improvement in SRT, suggesting that MOCR may not be a predominant mechanism for the temporal improvement in SPIN.

Sexuality following trauma injury: A literature review.

Restoration of the quality of life (QoL) of trauma injury survivors is the aim of trauma rehabilitation. It is generally acknowledged that sexuality is an important component of QoL; however, rehabilitation services frequently fall short of including sexuality as a matter of routine. The literature was reviewed to examine the experiences of trauma survivors from three groups: spinal cord injury (SCI), traumatic brain injury (TBI) and burns. The focus was on the impact of trauma on the QoL to identify future research directions and to advocate for the inclusion of sexuality as an integral part of rehabilitation. Databases searched were Proquest, Ovid, Cinahl, Medline, PsycInfo and Cochrane Central Register of controlled trials. A total of 36 eligible studies were included: SCI (n = 25), TBI (n = 6), burns (n = 5). Four themes were identified across the three trauma groups that were labeled as physiological impact of trauma on sexuality, cognitive-genital dissociation (CGD), sexual disenfranchisement (SD) and sexual rediscovery (SR). Trauma injury has a significant impact on sexuality, which is not routinely addressed within rehabilitation services. Further sexuality research is required among all trauma groups to improve rehabilitation services and in turn QoL outcomes for all trauma survivors.

Sexuality following burn injuries: a preliminary study.

Responses to the sexuality and body image subdomains of the Burn Specific Health Scale - Brief Version (BSHS-B) were analysed, to identify the incidence of sexuality and body image changes in burn survivors from hospital discharge - 12 months post injury. Data were collected through examination of BSHS-B questionnaires (BSHS-B), from burns patients at hospital discharge and one, three, six and twelve month time points after burn injury. The results demonstrate that burn injuries have a significant negative impact on sexuality and body image satisfaction for burn survivors. The results raise concerns regarding potential long term quality of life (QoL) issues for burn survivors in these domains. Sexuality and body image following burn injuries are important QoL domains that should be addressed during post injury rehabilitation. This preliminary study shows that further empirical research regarding changes to sexuality and body image in the burns population is required.