Hearing Aids and the Brain
- Conditions
- Hearing Loss
- Interventions
- Device: hearing aids
- Registration Number
- NCT03279510
- Lead Sponsor
- VA Office of Research and Development
- Brief Summary
Hearing aids are being fit on inexperienced hearing aid users and the short-term and long-term effects are measured. This research aims to improve understanding of the individual factors that contribute to receiving benefit from hearing aids and lead to more individualized treatment of hearing loss.
- Detailed Description
Hearing aids are used to improve audibility for patients with hearing loss and improve speech perception. In addition to these immediate benefits, amplification has the potential to have long-term effects on higher level auditory processing abilities, such as cognition or other abilities required for complex listening tasks. These long-term acclimatization effects are not well understood and merit further behavioral and physiological examination. Hearing aids will be fit on inexperienced hearing aid users and outcome measures will be used to determine immediate and long-term effects of hearing aids. This research may provide a more detailed view of individual differences that contribute to receiving benefit from a hearing aid and may lead to more individualized treatment of hearing loss.
Recruitment & Eligibility
- Status
- COMPLETED
- Sex
- All
- Target Recruitment
- 20
- 50 years of age or older
- Bilateral, mild to moderately severe hearing loss
- Inexperienced hearing aid users
- Subject deciding that they do not wish to wear hearing aids as necessitated per study protocol
- Audiometric thresholds that suggest research stimuli would not be audible
- Conductive hearing loss and/or other significant ear or hearing problems
- Non-native English speakers
- Conditions or circumstances that would preclude a participant from wearing hearing aids consistently or finishing the study
- An inability to perform or complete the experimental tasks
Study & Design
- Study Type
- INTERVENTIONAL
- Study Design
- SINGLE_GROUP
- Arm && Interventions
Group Intervention Description Hearing aids hearing aids All study participants will be fit with hearing aids.
- Primary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method Frequency following response timing Approximately 1 year Timing measured by cross-correlation between stimulus and response
Evoked potential amplitude Approximately 1 year Amplitude will be measured in microvolts
Ongoing electroencephalography power Approximately 1 year EEG power as a function of frequency recorded during words-in-noise measure
Listening invested/required effort Approximately 1 year Participants' rating of the effort required (0-9) and invested (0-9) for listening task
Word-in-noise perception testing Approximately 1 year Signal-to-noise ratio at which participant correctly understands 50% of speech in noise using WIN test
Working memory testing Approximately 1 year Performance on auditory working memory task
Evoked potential latency Approximately 1 year Latency will be measured in milliseconds
Frequency following response magnitude Approximately 1 year Magnitude of response measured in nanovolts
Reading Span Approximately 1 year Percent correct recall on working memory task
Hearing aid usage Approximately 1 year Data logging from the hearing aid will provide usage in hours per day
Glasgow Hearing Aid Benefit Profile (GHABP) Approximately 1 year Participants rating on five-point scale their perceived initial (i.e., unaided) hearing disability, initial handicap, aided benefit, aided handicap, HA use and HA satisfaction in four listening situations
Montreal Cognitive Assessment score Approximately 1 year Assessment score from 1 to 30
- Secondary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method
Trial Locations
- Locations (1)
VA Portland Health Care System, Portland, OR
🇺🇸Portland, Oregon, United States