Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
Otol Neurotol. 2018 Apr;39(4):e240-e249. doi: 10.1097/MAO.0000000000001749.
To investigate the impact of the wearing position of an off-the-ear-processor (OTE) on speech perception in quiet and noise.
The study group consisted of 16 adult subjects with bilateral severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss, 2 of them unilaterally, and 14 bilaterally provided with cochlear implants.
Speech perception in quiet and noise was measured for frontal presentation with the recipients behind-the-ear processor CP810 or CP910 and the OTE processor Kanso (Cochlear Limited, Sydney, Australia). Additionally, speech performance in noise with the OTE for spatially separated signal and noise sources was assessed.
The recipients showed monosyllabic word recognition scores in quiet between 65 and 95% and speech reception thresholds in noise between 2.4 and -5.5 dB SNR with the OTE. For frontal presentation of speech and noise, application of the adaptive directional microphone (Beam) yielded a slight median decrement of 0.6 dB for the speech reception threshold compared with standard directionality. However, huge median improvements, ranging from -3.7 to -11.6 dB, for the three tested conditions with spatially separated sources (S0NIL, S0NCL, S0N180) were observed.
The beamforming algorithm in the investigated OTE processor provides similar benefits as described in previous studies for behind-the-ear processors in conditions with spatially separated speech and noise sources. Adaptive microphone directionality can be successfully implemented in an OTE processor. The OTE processor's potential to increase usability, comfort, and cosmetics might not be compromised by a deterioration of speech performance.
研究离耳处理器（OTE）佩戴位置对安静和噪声环境下言语感知的影响。
研究组由 16 名双侧重度至极重度感音神经性听力损失的成年患者组成，其中 2 例为单侧，14 例双侧植入人工耳蜗。
使用 CP810 或 CP910 后置处理器和 Kanso（Cochlear Limited，悉尼，澳大利亚）OTE 处理器进行正面呈现时，评估安静和噪声环境下的言语感知；此外，还评估了 OTE 对空间分离信号和噪声源的噪声环境下的言语表现。
患者佩戴 OTE 的单音节词识别率在安静环境下为 65%至 95%，噪声环境下的言语接受阈值为 2.4 至-5.5dB SNR。对于言语和噪声的正面呈现，与标准方向性相比，自适应指向性麦克风（Beam）的应用使言语接受阈值的中位数略有下降 0.6dB。然而，对于空间分离源的三种测试条件（S0NIL、S0NCL、S0N180），观察到中位数的巨大改善，范围为-3.7 至-11.6dB。
研究中 OTE 处理器的波束成形算法在空间分离的言语和噪声源条件下，提供了与先前研究中报道的后置处理器相似的益处。自适应麦克风方向性可以在 OTE 处理器中成功实现。OTE 处理器增加可用性、舒适性和美观性的潜力不会因言语表现的恶化而受到影响。
