Mild-to-moderate hearing loss Ear, Nose and Throat
Conditions
Interventions
MMHL participants will receive: A) an omnidirectional OR an adaptive/directional hearing aid algorithm
and B) an assistive listening device (ALD) OR no ALD. When allocating the deaf children into these four groups, participants will be matched across groups based on age, sex, and hearing levels (pure t
Sponsors
Lancaster University
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
6 Years to 11 Years
Inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria: 1. Aged 6-11 years old 2. With fluency in English 3. Who possess instructional comprehension, confirmed by their audiologist 4. At least one caregiver with English fluency for instructional comprehension for research visits at Lancaster University 5. Attending mainstream schools 6. Be able to wear their hair loose to enable us to access strands of natural hair and their scalp during fNIRS and EEG recordings MMHL participants: 1. With bilateral/symmetrical sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) 2. With a minimum of one year of hearing aid experience, confirmed by their audiologist and previous clinic notes 3. With a history of consistent hearing aid usage (minimum 6h/day) The participants may be multilingual, as long as both the child and at least one caregiver understand English to ensure informed consent, assent, and instructional comprehension. However, an interpreter can be utilised at audiology clinics when necessary to support families
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria: 1. Medical diagnosis of neurological, psychiatric, and/or attention deficits 2. History of ear surgeries Further exclusion criteria for hearing children (control participants) only: 3. Medical diagnosis of learning, language, developmental delays, or hearing difficulties/disorders 4. Hearing loss of mild, moderate, severe, or profound degree (above 20 dB HL at standard frequencies)
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Auditory attention measured using reaction times and error rate in an auditory attention behavioural task at T0 (within one week after their device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting);Spatial hearing measured using virtual reality test of spatial hearing at T0 (within one week after their device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting);Audio-visual integration ability measured using minimum time window for successful audiovisual integration of speech at T0 (within one week after their device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting);Listening errors measured using electroencephalography (EEG) while listening to a story with mispronounced and nonsense words at T0 (within one week after their device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) | — |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| 1. Language development measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-5 and Receptive Polysemy Vocabulary Test at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 2. Classroom listening skills measured using the Vanderbilt Classroom Listening Assessment Survey and Communication Supporting Classrooms Observation Tool at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 3. Educational achievement (mathematics and literacy) measured using the York Assessment of Reading for Comprehension and Wechsler Individual Achievement Scale III at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 4. Listening difficulties measured using the Evaluation of Children’s Listening and Processing Skills questionnaire at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 5. Speech-in-noise discrimination ability measured using the BKB Sentences test and Who is Right? task at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 6. Hyperacusis and hypoacusis measured using the Hyperacusis in Children’s Questionnaire at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 7. Listening effort measured using the Vanderbilt Fatigue Scale and paediatric NASA Task-Load Index at T0 (within one week after device fitting), T1 (within one month after hearing aid fitting), and T2 (up to twelve months after device fitting) 8. Hearing aid usage measured using hearing aid data logging and the Child and Parent Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Scale at T0 (w | — |
Countries
England, United Kingdom
Contacts
Public ContactJulia Halstead
Outcome results
None listed