How cochlear implants plus natural hearing affect listening with two ears
Binaural cue sensitivity in children and adults with combined electric and acoustic stimulation
This work finds out how children and adults who use a cochlear implant together with some natural hearing use timing and loudness differences between ears to understand speech and locate sounds.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Hearts for Hearing Foundation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oklahoma City, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11238557 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
We will follow children and adults who have a cochlear implant and usable acoustic hearing in the other ear (EAS users). You will do listening tests that measure sensitivity to tiny timing (ITD) and level (ILD) differences and we will record objective brain responses to sounds. Participants will be tested soon after EAS fitting and at later visits to track how binaural hearing changes over time. The team will compare results across ages to understand why some people gain more benefit than others and to inform better clinical care.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are children or adults who have a cochlear implant plus usable acoustic hearing in the other ear (with or without a hearing aid) and can complete clinic listening tests and follow-up visits.
Not a fit: People with no usable residual hearing in the non-implanted ear, or those unable to attend testing visits, are unlikely to benefit directly from participation.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help audiologists tailor implant and hearing-aid settings so people get clearer speech in noise and better ability to localize sounds.
How similar studies have performed: Prior research in adults shows EAS users often have better speech-in-noise understanding and spatial hearing, but pediatric outcomes and developmental time courses are much less studied.
Where this research is happening
Oklahoma City, United States
- Hearts for Hearing Foundation — Oklahoma City, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gifford, Rene H — Hearts for Hearing Foundation
- Study coordinator: Gifford, Rene H
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.