Speech perception in tinnitus is related to individual distress level - A neurophysiological study

Hearing Research
Laura JagodaMartin Meyer

Abstract

Individuals suffering from tinnitus often complain about difficulties understanding speech in noisy environments even in the absence of a peripheral hearing loss. This EEG study aimed to investigate whether aspects of phonetic perception are affected by the experience of tinnitus. We examined a sample of individuals with chronic, subjective tinnitus (n = 30, age range 30-50 yrs.), who underwent behavioural screening (standard tinnitus questionnaires) and comprehensive audiometric testing that covered peripheral and central hearing abilities (pure tone audiometry, suprathreshold audiometry (frequency selectivity and temporal compression), and speech in noise performance). In addition, participants performed a phoneme discrimination task embedded in an active oddball paradigm, while auditory evoked potentials (AEPs) were recorded. In particular, we aimed to investigate if reported speech difficulties in chronic tinnitus trace back to deficits in more elementary speech processes such as phonetic processing. Furthermore, we explored whether central hearing loss and tinnitus' psychometric profile may account for deficiencies in speech perception. The analysis of behavioural and audiometric data showed indications of mild to moderate...Continue Reading

Citations

Oct 20, 2020·International Journal of Audiology·Jan A A van HeterenErwin L J George
Jan 28, 2021·Scientific Reports·P NeffB Mazurek

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