Cochlear Limited, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia.
Int J Audiol. 2013 Jul;52(7):485-94. doi: 10.3109/14992027.2013.781277. Epub 2013 Apr 25.
This article provides a detailed description and evaluation of the next Nucleus(®) cochlear implant fitting suite. A new fitting methodology is presented that, at its simplest level, requires a single volume adjustment, and at its advanced level, provides access to 22-channel fitting. It is implemented on multiple platforms, including a mobile platform (Remote Assistant Fitting) and an accessible PC application (Nucleus Fitting Software). Additional tools for home care and surgical care are also described.
Two trials were conducted, comparing the fitting methodology with the existing Custom Sound™ methodology, as fitted by the recipient and by an experienced cochlear implant audiologist.
Thirty-seven subjects participated in the trials.
No statistically significant differences were observed between the group mean scores, whether fitted by the recipient or by an experienced audiologist. The lower bounds of the 95% confidence intervals of the differences represented clinically insignificant differences. No statistically significant differences were found in the subjective program preferences of the subjects.
Equivalent speech perception outcomes were demonstrated when compared to current best practice. As such, the new technology has the potential to expand the capacity of audiological care without compromising efficacy.
本文详细介绍和评估了下一代 Nucleus（®）人工耳蜗植入物的适配套件。本文提出了一种新的适配方法，在最简单的层面上，只需要进行单个音量调整，在更高级的层面上，则可以实现 22 通道的适配。该方法适用于多个平台，包括移动平台（Remote Assistant Fitting）和可访问的 PC 应用程序（Nucleus Fitting Software）。本文还介绍了其他用于家庭护理和手术护理的工具。
进行了两项试验，将该适配方法与现有的 Custom Sound（TM）适配方法进行了比较，比较对象是受验者和经验丰富的人工耳蜗植入物听力学家的适配结果。
37 名受试者参与了试验。
无论是受验者还是经验丰富的听力学家进行适配，组平均得分之间均未观察到统计学上的显著差异。差异的 95%置信区间下限代表了临床意义上的微小差异。受试者对主观程序的偏好也没有统计学上的显著差异。
与当前最佳实践相比，该技术在言语感知方面的结果相当。因此，新技术有可能在不影响疗效的情况下扩大听力护理的能力。
