Auditory Spatial Perception as a Function of Recreational Noise Exposure in Gen-Z Adults with Normal Hearing.

The study aimed to evaluate auditory spatial perception in individuals with and without recreational noise exposure using Virtual Acoustic Space Identification. A standard group comparison design using purposive sampling was conducted on 60 normal-hearing participants aged 18-30. They were divided into experimental and control groups based on their scores on the recreational hearing habits questionnaire (CHAR).

The impact of tinnitus on speech perception in noise: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: Tinnitus is a condition that causes people to hear sounds without an external source. One significant issue arising from this condition is the difficulty in communicating, especially in the presence of noisy backgrounds. The process of understanding speech in challenging situations requires both cognitive and auditory abilities.

Knowledge and Attitudes of Parents and Caregivers in New Delhi to Childhood Hearing Loss and Hearing Services.

Parental and caregiver support is crucial for addressing childhood hearing loss in low and middle-income countries, where a significant burden of disabling hearing loss exists among children. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of parents and caregivers regarding childhood hearing loss and available hearing services in both urban and rural settings in Delhi, India. A total of 314 participants were recruited and interviewed using a culturally adapted questionnaire consisting of 26 items, covering topics like biomedical and non-biomedical beliefs, knowledge of otitis media-related hearing loss, identification, and intervention.

Differential advantages of musical backgrounds on binaural integration and interaction skills in instrumentalists, vocalists, and non-musicians.

Background: Musical perception requires a host of skills. Instrumental musicians place greater emphasis on motor coordination, whereas vocal musicians rehearse vocal sounds. The study explored the differential advantages of musical background on binaural integration and interaction in musicians (instrumentalists, vocalists) and compared them with age-matched non-musicians.

Comparison of a Free-Field and a Closed-Field Sound Source Identification Paradigms in Assessing Spatial Acuity in Adults With Normal Hearing Sensitivity.

Background And Objectives: Traditional sound field localization setups in a free-field environment closely represent real-world situations. However, they are costly and sophisticated, and it is difficult to replicate similar setups in every clinic. Hence, a cost-effective, portable, and less sophisticated virtual setup will be more feasible for assessing spatial acuity in the clinical setting.

Normal linear and non-linear cochlear mechanisms and efferent system functioning in individuals with misophonia.

Background: Misophonia, a condition characterized by heightened sensitivity and strong emotional reactions to specific sounds, has sparked considerable interest and debate regarding its underlying auditory mechanisms. The study aimed to understand the auditory underpinnings of two such potential inner ear systems, non-linear and linear outer hair cell functioning along with auditory efferent functioning in individuals with misophonia.

Methods: 40 ears with misophonia (20 participants) and 37 ears without misophonia (20 participants), both having normal hearing sensitivity were included in this study.

Patient-Reported Outcome Measures for Hearing Aid Benefit and Satisfaction: Content Validity and Readability.

Purpose: Numerous patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are available to measure hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. It is unclear to what extent currently available PROMs on hearing aid outcomes, often developed decades ago, meet current guidelines for good content validity and readability. This study evaluated the content validity and readability of PROMs that focus on perceived hearing aid benefit and/or satisfaction.

Test-Retest Reliability of Virtual Acoustic Space Identification Test in School-Going Children.

Purpose: The virtual acoustic space identification (VASI) test was designed to assess spatial-hearing acuity by simulating sound location perception in a closed field (under headphones). The utility of this tool in children can be asserted only if the test results are consistent across measurement sessions, which is evaluated in this study using test-retest reliability assessments.

Method: The VASI test assessed the spatial abilities of 40 typically developing school-aged children aged 7-13 years ( = 10.

Age differences in binaural and working memory abilities in school-going children.

Objectives: Binaural hearing is the interplay of acoustic cues (interaural time differences: ITD, interaural level differences: ILD, and spectral cues) and cognitive abilities (e.g., working memory, attention).

Test re-test reliability of virtual acoustic space identification (VASI) test in young adults with normal hearing.

Background: Recent developments in virtual acoustic technology has levered promising applications in the field of auditory sciences, especially in spatial perception. While conventional auditory spatial assessment using loudspeakers, interaural differences and/or questionnaires are limited by the availability and cost of instruments, the use of virtual acoustic space identification (VASI) test has widespread applications in spatial test battery as it overcomes these constraints.

Purpose: The lack of test-retest reliability data of VASI test narrows its direct application in auditory spatial assessment, which is explored in the present study.

Spatial rehabilitation using virtual auditory space training paradigm in individuals with sensorineural hearing impairment.

Purpose: The present study aimed to quantify the effects of spatial training using virtual sources on a battery of spatial acuity measures in listeners with sensorineural hearing impairment (SNHI).

Methods: An intervention-based time-series comparison design involving 82 participants divided into three groups was adopted. Group I ( = 27, SNHI-spatially trained) and group II ( = 25, SNHI-untrained) consisted of SNHI listeners, while group III ( = 30) had listeners with normal hearing (NH).

Effects of Abacus Training on Auditory Spatial Maturation in Children with Normal Hearing.

 The spatial auditory system, though developed at birth, attains functional maturity in the late childhood (12 years). Spatial changes during childhood affect navigation in the environment and source segregation. Accommodation of a new skill through learning, especially during childhood, can expedite this process.

Effects of Maturation and Chronological Aging on Auditory Spatial Processing: A Cross-Sectional Study Across Life Span.

Objective: The primary aim of the research was to document spatial acuity changes across the life span using a battery of psychoacoustical and perceptual tests. The secondary aim was to identify the optimal metric for measuring spatial processing changes across the life span (ages 10-70 years).

Design And Study Sample: A cross-sectional study comprising 115 participants with clinically normal hearing was conducted.

Gender differences in contralateral suppression of spontaneous otoacoustic emissions in individuals with auditory neuropathy spectrum disorders.

Purpose: The current study aims to evaluate gender variations in the efferent auditory system functioning in the ANSD population and compare them to normal hearing persons using contralateral suppression of spontaneous OAE (SOAEs).

Methods: For the current study, a total of 54 ears were considered prospectively. 27 ears with normal hearing (NH) sensitivity were in group I, while 27 ears with ANSD were in group II.

Profiles and predictors of onset based differences in vocal characteristics of adults with auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder (ANSD).

Purpose: Onset-based differences are understudied in Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder (ANSD) in dimensions such as voice, which is addressed in the study. The study aimed to profile and predict the best metrics of onset-related differences in acoustic vocal characteristics of early and late-onset ANSD patients.

Methods: 31 participants (15 early and 16 late-onset) aged 15-30 years diagnosed with ANSD were included in the study.

Musical Training and Its Association With Age-Related Changes in Binaural, Temporal, and Spatial Processing.

Objective: This article aimed to assess the relationship between musical training and age-related changes in binaural, temporal, and spatial processing abilities.

Design: A standard group comparison study was conducted involving both musicians and nonmusicians. The effect of musical training was assessed using a battery of psychoacoustical tests (interaural time and level difference thresholds: ITD & ILD, binaural gap detection threshold, and virtual auditory space identification test) and subjective ratings (Spatial-Hearing subsection of Speech, Spatial, and Quality of Hearing scale in Kannada).

Effects of Spatial Training Paradigms on Auditory Spatial Refinement in Normal-Hearing Listeners: A Comparative Study.

Background And Objectives: This study compared the effectiveness of two spatial training programs using real and virtual sound sources in refining spatial acuity skills in listeners with normal hearing.

Subjects And Methods: The study was conducted on two groups of 10 participants each; groups I and II underwent spatial training using real and virtual sound sources, respectively. The study was conducted in three phases: pre-training, training, and post-training phases.

Examining the consequences of tinnitus using the multidimensional perspective.

Background: Tinnitus is one of the most frequent chronic conditions in adults with wide range of consequences.

Aims/objectives: The aim of the current study was to determine the problems and life effects reported by individuals with tinnitus using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework.

Material And Methods: The study used a cross-sectional survey design.

Audiological Profiling and Rehabilitation Outcomes in a Child With Johanson-Blizzard Syndrome.

Johanson Blizzard syndrome (JBS) is an autosomal recessive disorder that shows a multi-faceted impact on almost all body functions, including speech and hearing. This case presentation describes the comprehensive audiological and rehabilitative profile of an 8-year-old female child with JBS while correlating the test results to the physiological aspects of hearing. Case history revealed poor developmental motor skills, delayed speech and language development with hypothyroidism, and dysmorphic facial features including low bat ears, micrognathia, high arched palate, and hypoplasia of nasal alae.

Musical Aptitude as a Variable in the Assessment of Working Memory and Selective Attention Tasks.

Background And Objectives: The influence of musical aptitude on cognitive test performance in musicians is a long-debated research question. Evidence points to the low performance of nonmusicians in visual and auditory cognitive tasks (working memory and attention) compared with musicians. This cannot be generalized to all nonmusicians, as a sub-group in this population can have innate musical abilities even without any formal musical training.

Contralateral Suppression of Spontaneous Otoacoustic Emissions in Individuals With Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder.

Background: The current study attempted to assess efferent auditory system functioning in individuals with auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder (ANSD) using a new approach, contralateral suppression of SOAE, which has not yet been extensively researched.

Methods: Spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOAEs) were recorded in a total of 62 ears, divided into 2 groups. Group I comprised of 31 ears with normal hearing (NH), while group II consisted of 31 ears with ANSD.

Profiles and predictors of auditory functioning in abacus-trained children.

Objectives: The present study explored the auditory benefits of abacus-training using a battery of tests (auditory acuity, clarity, and cognition). The study also aimed to identify the relative contributions of auditory processing tests that are most sensitive to the effects of abacus-training.

Materials And Methods: The study was conducted on 60 children aged between 9 - 14 years.

Pre-Attentive Neural Signatures of Auditory Spatial Processing in Listeners With Normal Hearing and Sensorineural Hearing Impairment: A Comparative Study.

Purpose This study was carried out to understand the neural intricacies of auditory spatial processing in listeners with sensorineural hearing impairment (SNHI) and compare it with normal hearing (NH) listeners using both local and global measures of waveform analyses. Method A standard group comparison research design was adopted in this study. Participants were assigned to 2 groups.

Antimicrobial susceptibility, risk factors and prevalence of cefotaximase, temoneira, and sulfhydryl variable genes among in community-acquired pediatric urinary tract infection.

Introduction: The emergence of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing has become an important challenge among pediatric patients with community-acquired urinary tract infection (UTI).

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns, associated risk factors and to survey the frequency of cefotaximase (CTX-M), temoneira (TEM), and sulfhydryl variable (SHV) genotypes in ESBL-producing isolated from children with community-acquired UTI.

Methods: This was a prospective study conducted from November 2012 to March 2016 in a tertiary care center.

Virtual Auditory Space Training-Induced Changes of Auditory Spatial Processing in Listeners with Normal Hearing.

Objective: Localization involves processing of subtle yet highly enriched monaural and binaural spatial cues. Remediation programs aimed at resolving spatial deficits are surprisingly scanty in literature. The present study is designed to explore the changes that occur in the spatial performance of normal-hearing listeners before and after subjecting them to virtual acoustic space (VAS) training paradigm using behavioral and electrophysiological measures.