Auditory Research Center, Caruso Department of Otolaryngology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States of America.
Auditory Research Center, Caruso Department of Otolaryngology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States of America.
Hear Res. 2024 Jul;448:109026. doi: 10.1016/j.heares.2024.109026. Epub 2024 May 16.
Cochlear implants are medical devices that have restored hearing to approximately one million people around the world. Outcomes are impressive and most recipients attain excellent speech comprehension in quiet without relying on lip-reading cues, but pitch resolution is poor compared to normal hearing. Amplitude modulation of electrical stimulation is a primary cue for pitch perception in cochlear implant users. The experiments described in this article focus on the relationship between sensitivity to amplitude modulations and pitch resolution based on changes in the frequency of amplitude modulations. In the first experiment, modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution were measured in adults with no known hearing loss and in cochlear implant users with sounds presented to and processed by their clinical devices. Stimuli were amplitude-modulated sinusoids and amplitude-modulated narrow-band noises. Modulation detection and modulation frequency discrimination were measured for modulation frequencies centered on 110, 220, and 440 Hz. Pitch resolution based on changes in modulation frequency was measured for modulation depths of 25 %, 50 %, 100 %, and for a half-waved rectified modulator. Results revealed a strong linear relationship between modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution for cochlear implant users and peers with no known hearing loss. In the second experiment, cochlear implant users took part in analogous procedures of modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution but bypassing clinical sound processing using single-electrode stimulation. Results indicated that modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution was better conveyed by single-electrode stimulation than by clinical processors. Results at 440 Hz were worse, but also not well conveyed by clinical sound processing, so it remains unclear whether the 300 Hz perceptual limit described in the literature is a technological or biological limitation. These results highlight modulation depth and sensitivity as critical factors for pitch resolution in cochlear implant users and characterize the relationship that should inform the design of modulation enhancement algorithms for cochlear implants.
人工耳蜗是一种能为全球约 100 万人恢复听力的医疗器械。其效果令人瞩目,大多数使用者在安静环境中无需依赖唇读就能极好地理解言语,但与正常听力相比,其音调分辨率仍较差。电刺激的调幅是人工耳蜗使用者感知音调的主要线索。本文描述的实验重点关注基于调幅频率变化,调幅灵敏度与音调分辨率之间的关系。在第一个实验中,我们测量了无已知听力损失的成年人和使用其临床设备接收和处理声音的人工耳蜗使用者的调制灵敏度和音调分辨率。刺激为调幅正弦波和调幅窄带噪声。在中心频率为 110Hz、220Hz 和 440Hz 的调幅频率下,测量了调制检测和调制频率辨别。对于调制深度为 25%、50%和 100%以及半波整流调制器,测量了基于调制频率变化的音调分辨率。结果表明,人工耳蜗使用者与无已知听力损失的同龄人之间,调制灵敏度与音调分辨率之间存在很强的线性关系。在第二个实验中,人工耳蜗使用者参与了类似的调制灵敏度和音调分辨率的实验,但绕过了临床声音处理,使用单电极刺激。结果表明,单电极刺激比临床处理器能更好地传递调制灵敏度和音调分辨率。440Hz 时的结果更差,但临床声音处理也无法很好地传递,因此尚不清楚文献中描述的 300Hz 感知极限是技术限制还是生物限制。这些结果突出了调制深度和灵敏度作为人工耳蜗使用者音调分辨率的关键因素,并描述了应告知人工耳蜗调制增强算法设计的关系。