Can the use of the CROS system provide head shadow effect contribution to unilateral Cochlear Implant Users?
Ana Cristina Hiromi Hoshino, Maria Valéria Schmidt Goffi-Gomez, Paola Angelica Samuel Sierra and 4 others
PMID 35385028WHAT IT FOUND
Adding a CROS device to a unilateral cochlear implant improved speech recognition and reduced listening effort when sounds came from the unaided side.
It did not change performance when sounds came from the front. This helps with head shadow but does not create binaural hearing.
Key findings
01Speech recognition scores were significantly higher with the CI+CROS device in the head-shadow condition.
02Participants rated speech clarity and ease of listening as significantly better when using the CROS device in the head-shadow condition.
03There was no statistically significant difference in outcomes between using the CROS device and not using it when speech and noise were presented from the front.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study included only 11 participants. Participants were not blind to whether they were using the CROS device, which may have influenced their subjective ratings of clarity and effort. The study used disyllabic words rather than sentences, which may not reflect real-world conversational complexity. The benefit was assessed acutely; the study did not measure how performance might change with long-term use and adaptation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume the CROS device improves all listening situations. It specifically helps when sound comes from the non-implanted side. It did not improve performance when sound came from the front, and it does not provide binaural hearing or localization abilities.