Speech Understanding With Various Maskers in Cochlear-Implant and Simulated Cochlear-Implant Hearing: Effects of Spectral Resolution and Implications for Masking Release.
Naomi B H Croghan, Zachary M Smith
PMID 30022730WHAT IT FOUND
Better spectral resolution predicts better speech understanding in noise, especially with a competing talker.
Cochlear implant users with good baseline hearing showed masking release, contrary to older reports. This suggests individual differences in implant performance drive speech-in-noise ability.
Key findings
01Listeners with better spectral resolution had better sentence reception in noise.
02Speech understanding in a competing talker was most dependent on spectral resolution, while speech-shaped noise was least dependent.
03Cochlear implant users with good baseline speech-in-noise scores showed masking release (better performance with a competing talker than steady noise), unlike many previous reports.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Small sample size (20 CI users, 7 vocoder listeners). The vocoder group was significantly younger and had normal hearing, which may limit direct comparison to older CI users. Baseline signal-to-noise ratios were not controlled between groups, so the relationship between spectral resolution and masking release might be influenced by overall performance level rather than resolution alone. CI subjects had varying durations of deafness and device use, introducing heterogeneity.
Declared interests
None reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that all cochlear implant users lack masking release. While older literature suggested CI users do not benefit from fluctuating maskers, this study found that CI users with good baseline speech-in-noise scores did show masking release. The absence of this benefit may be linked to poorer baseline performance rather than the implant itself.