Ear–brain reflex and hearing in noisy places
Olivocochlear Efferent Function: Associations with Hearing in Noise and Listening Effort
This project looks at whether a natural ear–brain reflex helps adults with normal hearing who have trouble understanding speech in noisy places and whether it makes listening less tiring.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Champaign, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11291236 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, researchers will enroll two groups of adults with normal hearing: people who say they struggle to hear in background noise and people who do not. You'll have standard hearing tests plus recordings of ear and brain responses while listening to sounds with and without background noise. The team will measure the strength of an ear–brain reflex (the medial olivocochlear reflex) and compare how much effort people report when trying to understand speech in noise. The goal is to see whether reflex strength or ascending nerve signals relate to speech-in-noise problems and listening fatigue.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults (21+) with normal audiometric thresholds who report difficulty understanding speech in background noise (and age- and sex-matched adults without such difficulty for the comparison group).
Not a fit: People with diagnosed hearing loss on standard audiograms, cochlear implant users, children, or those unwilling to travel to the study site are unlikely to benefit from participation.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to better tests and treatments for people who struggle to hear speech in noisy environments despite having normal hearing tests.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies have shown mixed results linking the medial olivocochlear reflex to speech-in-noise ability, so this project is relatively novel in recruiting symptomatic adults and measuring listening effort and afferent contributions.
Where this research is happening
Champaign, United States
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign — Champaign, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mertes, Ian B. — University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Study coordinator: Mertes, Ian B.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.