Research Projects
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Indiana University School of Medicine
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
RESEARCH PROJECTS
Development and adaptive behavior of young children with hearing loss (Lead investigator: Richard T. Miyamoto; Contributing investigators: Shirley C. Henning, Bethany G. Colson): Research has now established the importance of early identification and intervention on successful outcomes for children with hearing loss. However, the majority of outcomes research has been focused on children with profound hearing loss. Far less attention has been given to determining the specific factors that lead to successful outcomes for young children with mild to severe hearing loss. Through examination of developmental trajectories in a number of domains, and comparison of these developmental patterns to those of young children with typical hearing, the aim of this study is to develop a better understanding of the specific child, family, and intervention factors that lead to optimal development of children with mild to severe hearing loss. Information gathered will be used to inform early intervention and education programs. This work is supported by NIDCD/NIH R01DC009561(House Ear Institute, San Diego State University).
Neurocognitive Processes in Deaf Children with Cochlear Implants (Lead investigators: David B. Pisoni, William G. Kronenberger; Contributing investigators: Bethany G. Colson, Shirley C. Henning):We know a great deal about factors such as age of implantation, device type and communication mode that benefit speech and language outcomes of deaf children who receive cochlear implants. However, little is known about the large individual differences which continue to be a hallmark in these children. This variability in traditional speech and language outcome measures has led us to look beyond the well-established predictors to find novel areas of influence on outcomes for the children who develop limited speech and language skills. The primary objective of this study is to examine these new sources of potential variability which include memory, processing speed, learning, concentration, and inhibition. The results of this study will provide new fundamental knowledge about the sources of variability and underlying neurocognitive factors that are responsible for individual differences in speech and language outcomes, and will have direct implications for the diagnosis, treatment and early identification of deaf children who may be at risk for poor outcomes following implantation. This work is supported by NIH R01DC009581.
Speech perception and language development in deaf infants with hearing aids or cochlear implants (Lead investigators: Tonya R. Bergeson & Derek M. Houston): In a variety of projects, we are exploring the effects of auditory deprivation and subsequent intervention via hearing aids or cochlear implants on different aspects of speech perception and language development. Read more about Dr. Bergeson's and Dr. Houston's projects that take place in their laboratory. This work is supported by NIH R21DC06682 and NIH R01DC006235.
Speech perception and phonological memory with combined electric acoustic hearing (Lead Investigator: Marcia Hay-McCutcheon; Contributing Investigators: David B. Pisoni, Karen Iler Kirk, Richard T. Miyamoto): This research project assesses how the use of a hearing aid in the opposite ear to a cochlear implant (i.e, combined acoustic and electric stimulation) impacts the processing of speech for cochlear implant recipients. Previous research has shown that the limited spectral cues provided through a cochlear implant results in poor speech recognition in noisy environments and does not allow for the successful identification of a number of different talkers. One aim of this project is to determine how the use of bimodal stimulation affects the identification of isolated vowels, voice-gender and the dialect of individual talkers. In addition, this project will determine the impact that the use of bimodal stimulation has on phonological memory for acoustically distinct and acoustically similar vowels, and in turn determine how individual memory skills affect talker recognition. It is hoped that that this research will contribute additional knowledge about the basis for the individual variability in outcome performance that is widely observed within the cochlear implant population. This work is supported by NIH R03DC008383.
Speech perception and spoken word recognition by children with cochlear implants (Lead Investigator: Richard T. Miyamoto; Contributing Investigators: Karen Iler Kirk, Marcia Hay-McCutcheon, David B. Pisoni, Anna Dusick, Laurie Eisenberg, Sujuan Gao): This is a longitudinal project that investigates the effects of early intervention with cochlear implants or hearing aids on the development of speech perception, spoken word recognition and language skills in children with prelingual hearing loss. There are three main objectives to this project. First, spoken word recognition and language development during the first three years of life in children with congenital, severe-to-profound hearing loss who have received either cochlear implants or hearing aids is explored. Second, spoken word recognition and receptive language abilities as a function of age at time of implantation in children who are implanted prior to the age of three is examined. Finally, the benefits of cochlear implants in children who present with handicapping conditions in addition to hearing loss is investigated. This work is supported by NIH R01DC000064.
