Digital Commons Network^™

A Comparison Of Temporary Threshold Shifts In Dentists, Hygienists, And Dental Assistants, Sabina E. Ciaccio

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Objective: The purpose of this study is to compare the temporary threshold shifts (TTS) in dentists, hygienists, and dental assistants. The specific aim of this study is to compare the differences in temporary shifts caused by the different dental equipment and the proximity to the equipment. The current literature does not compare the change in hearing thresholds of dental personnel.

Methods: Dentists, dental assistants, and hygienists from Hermann Dental Associates will be given a case history form to determine inclusion status for this study. Exclusion criteria will include known hearing loss and significant noise exposure the day prior. …

Practices And Attitudes Towards Infant Hearing Protection At Orthodox Jewish Weddings, Rebecca Weiss

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Previous research has shown that prolonged exposure to noise can cause permanent hearing loss no matter what age, including infants. The impact of noise at orthodox Jewish weddings, where infants are frequently in attendance, can reach extremely high and damaging levels of sound intensity. Because the hearing conservation behaviors and attitudes towards child hearing protection in this population are unknown, the objective of this study is to identify the attitudes and behaviors of orthodox Jewish wedding attendees toward child hearing conservation. A survey was developed and administered electronically to congregants of orthodox Jewish synagogues in the New York City area. …

Caring For Individuals Who Are Experiencing Homelessness: An Audiologist’S Toolkit, Jenna Marie Sparacio

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

National-level counts for individuals experiencing homelessness have been steadily on the rise. People experiencing homelessness face extraordinary barriers and challenges in accessing health care services, including hearing healthcare. Additionally, there is a high prevalence of self- reported hearing difficulties and hearing handicap among people experiencing homelessness. Hearing loss status and management is often not prioritized in healthcare settings, and treatment plans are not typically modified to best address the hearing needs of individuals who are homeless. This evidence-based toolbox for audiologists was developed to help understand and mediate healthcare barriers that people experiencing homelessness face, as well as to help …

Exploring The Potential Of Hearing Screening Smartphone Applications To Enhance Access To Hearing Healthcare: A Literature Review, Adam Sulaiman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In 2016, the National Academies of Sciences (NAS) published a landmark consensus report with several recommendations to enhance the availability and affordability of hearing healthcare in the United States. Among the most notable of the recommendations was the creation of a new category of FDA-approved Over-the-Counter (OTC) hearing aids. Unlike the traditional hearing aid model, which requires a comprehensive hearing test by a hearing health professional prior to purchase, OTC hearing aids would be directly available for sale to any American adult with a self-perceived mild-to-moderate degree of hearing loss. This proposal has now become reality with the passage of …

Reviews Of Applications For Smartphone-Connected Hearing Aids And Implications On Counseling, Rebecca Strong

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

With the recent rise of smartphone ownership, more applications have been created that connect user’s hearing aids to their smartphone. One type of application that has become popular is one that allows the user to control hearing aids using a smartphone. While these applications have many benefits for the user, there has been very little research on the experiences of individuals using these applications. In order for audiologists to best help their patients troubleshoot and prepare reasonable expectations for using smartphone-connected hearing aids, they need to understand the patient experience to create effective solutions. One technique that can be used …

Age-Related Decline In Neural Synchrony And The Ffr, Haley Szabo

Dissertations, 2020-current

It is a known phenomenon that speech understanding in background noise declines with advancing age. Although there is ample evidence of behavioral measures declining with age, there is less physiologic evidence. This study hypothesizes that the FFR will be degraded with advancing age, consistent with poorer phase locking. This is hypothesized to be present even in people with audiograms within normal limits. A second hypothesis is that middle-aged adults will have degraded neural representation as frequency increases, compared to a younger normal hearing group which will have better high frequency neural representation than the middle-aged group. Subjects were divided into …

Audiologists' Perspectives On Noise Induced Hearing Loss, Rachael L. Cleary

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Excessive noise has long been established in the literature as a prevalent workplace hazard. The high prevalence of occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) has led to high economic costs and has produced many physical and mental health effects on workers exposed to occupational noise. Standards set by OSHA are implemented in the workplace in order to protect employees. Despite these regulations set by OSHA, millions of workers in the United States are still exposed to excessive occupational noise, with limited use of hearing protection. The high prevalence of occupational NIHL and low use of hearing protective devices (HPDs) brings into …

A Survey Of Cochlear Implant Clinical Protocols In India, Ariana Morris

Dissertations, 2020-current

The most recent data published in December 2019 records that approximately 736,900 registered cochlear implantation devices have been received since their approval in the 1980s. While 183,100 of these devices belong to U.S. Citizens, the large majority of cochlear implant recipients live in other countries (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2016). While a lack of standardized practices exists in relation to audiologic care and management of cochlear implant devices and patients, Browning et al. (2020) attempts to assess and analyze common practices amongst audiologists practicing within the United States of America. This survey uses a modified questionnaire based …

The Relationship Between The Vestibular Ocular Reflex And Perception In Young Healthy Adults, Susanne Nelson

Dissertations, 2020-current

Vestibular impairments are often identified through measures of vestibular reflexes such as the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR). However, in clinical practice measures of the VOR do not always correlate with the patient’s reported symptoms. In contrast to physiologic measures like the VOR, psychophysical methods can be used to assess a person’s perception of movement. Previous psychophysics research shows that perceptual thresholds of angular motion do not correlate with VOR measures, but this has not been assessed at suprathreshold levels. The purpose of this study was to assess whether vestibular reflexive responses (i.e., VOR) were correlated to the patient’s perception of movement …

Temporal Modulation Transfer Functions Of Amplitude-Modulated Cervical Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials In Young Adults, Kerri Lawlor

Dissertations, 2020-current

Cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMPs) are widely used to evaluate saccular function in clinical and research applications. Typically, transient tonebursts are used to elicit cVEMPs. In this study, we used bone-conducted amplitude-modulated (AM) tones to elicit AMcVEMPs. This new approach allows the examination of phase-locked vestibular responses across a range of modulation frequencies. Currently, cVEMP temporal modulation transfer functions (TMTFs) are not well defined. The purposes of the present study were 1) to characterize the AMcVEMP TMTF in young, healthy individuals, 2) to compare AMcVEMP TMTFs across different analysis approaches, and 3) to determine the upper frequency limit of …

Patients’ Perspective Of Patient-Centered Approach Vs. Biomedical Approach, Lakynn Hillhouse

Honors Theses

Evidence-based practice in audiology may consist of a patient-centered approach or a biomedical approach when offering individuals the results of hearing evaluations. Boisvert et al. (2017) and the Institute for Defense Analysis confirmed that audiologists preferred to select one approach. The question was if an audiology patient is presented with two options of explaining the hearing health issues, which model/approach will be his or her preference?

Participants may have had unconscious biases related to race or gender that could have unknowingly impacted their perception of the videos. The results of this research will facilitate clinical understanding of individual preferences regarding …

Counseling For Psychosocial Stress Factors Associated With Hearing Loss, Emily Mcmaster

Honors Theses

Audiologists play a major role in helping people with hearing loss learn how to better communicate and how to connect to the world around them. The purpose of this project investigates the extent to which audiologists counsel their clients for the psychosocial stress factors caused by hearing loss, along with determining the extent in which patients with hearing loss feel they would benefit from counseling services implemented into their appointments. In addition to psychosocial stress factors, the thesis will analyze the extent to which clients are educated on their hearing loss and given practical ways to adjust to their loss …

The Patterns And Prevalence Of Vestibular Disorders In Relation To Pediatric Concussions, Emma Vosniak

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

INTRODUCTION: Concussions are a movement of the brain that can cause damage to the cells of the brain and any surrounding structures. One of the closest structures is the vestibular system, a part of the inner ear, controlling our balance and bodily movement. Though it is known that vestibular disorders and related symptoms are common after a concussion, there remains limited research regarding approaches to better address these disorders. STUDY AIM: The purpose of this study is to identify patterns regarding the prevalence, assessment, and treatment of vestibular disorders in pediatric patients who have sustained past concussions. METHODOLOGY: An online …

Experience And Satisfaction With Hearing Aid Services Delivered Via Teleaudiology In Adult Populations: A Systematic Review, Shelby Platia

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Objective: The goal of this systematic review is to examine the current literature to look at patient experience and satisfaction with teleaudiology services. Specifically, teleaudiology services that occur at the fitting and/or post-fitting stage of the adult hearing aid patient journey.

Methods: A comprehensive search utilizing PubMed, MEDLINE and EBSCOhost databases were conducted to identify pertinent, peer-reviewed, articles related to the clinical usage or clinical applications of teleaudiology for hearing aid fittings and/or follow-up for adult individuals. Inclusion criteria were studies that are empirical, included quantitative results, articles published in English, peer-reviewed articles; and persons who are 18 …

Noise Exposure And Hearing Protection In Marching Band Students, Emily Myers

Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communication Disorders Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this research project was to investigate collegiate marching band members’ use of hearing protection during rehearsals and performances. A second purpose was to identify the concerns of marching band members about the use of hearing protection. Finally, the third purpose was to determine if the type of protection used, standard or custom, impacted wearing time. Hearing threshold sensitivity, tympanometry, and use of hearing protection were measured prior to the fitting of the custom earmolds and again at the end of the marching season.

Pre-season results indicated that the majority of band members reported they did not wear …

Musicians Who Use Cochlear Implants Proposal, Leanne Bunnell

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The purpose of this scoping review was to provide information about the current research related to audiological practices regarding the population of musicians who use cochlear implants technology. This scoping review included studies that investigated post implantation therapy/activities designed to assist users who were also musicians. A scoping review identifies trends and gaps in available evidence. This information can be used to inform on practices currently being used in the audiologic field and identify areas for further research. A scoping review was conducted in April 2021 to identify English-language peer-reviewed journal articles published from 2010 to March 2021. Thematic analysis …

A New Method In Subjective Tinnitus Management: The Use Of A Nutraceutical Formulation To Improve Patient Outcomes, Jade Faulkner

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Objective: This project aims to implement an evidence-based clinical practice guideline at the International Hearing Centre (IHC) in Lagos, Nigeria for future research and data collection of their subjective tinnitus management using a nutraceutical formulation called ‘NHANCED Hearing (NH). After learning the IHC had incomplete charting in regard to tinnitus questionnaires pre- and post-administration of the NH formula, this capstone project sought to apply evidence-based guidelines for proper diagnostic evaluations and charting to assist in future research of the NH formula.

Methodology: A review and synthesis of current clinical practice guidelines in the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, …

Development Of An Aba Tool Kit For Audiologists To Increase Hearing Aid Wear Time In Individuals With Autism, Lindsay Brown

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

When working with individuals with the dual-diagnosis of hearing loss and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), audiologists are often faced with unique challenges and must adapt their approach in order to more effectively address the needs of these individuals. Currently, there is only a small body of research focused on the special considerations required for appropriately fitting and utilizing amplification for children with the dual-diagnosis of hearing loss and ASD. Subsequently, recommendations and strategies for clinicians to implement when faced with these common challenges, specifically of hearing aid compliance and appropriate hearing aid wear time, are lacking. It is important to …

An Educational Audiology Model For Mississippi: Telepractice For Direct Service Provision, Sally Autry

Honors Theses

Hearing loss among school-aged children is becoming increasingly prevalent (CDC, 2019). Having hearing loss in a classroom setting can negatively affect a child’s language development, academic achievement, and social communication. Educational audiology plays a vital role in the academic success of children with hearing loss by providing a full range of audiology services to students, as part of a multidisciplinary team, to facilitate listening, learning, and communication access. By performing specialized assessments, monitoring personal hearing instruments, recommending, fitting, and managing hearing assistive technology, providing support services, and advocating on behalf of students with hearing loss, educational audiologists help to bridge …

Audibility, Cost-Acceptibility And Cosmetic Appearance Of Iqbuds Boost In Adults Over The Age Of 50, Madison Dacus, Vishakha Rawool

Honors Theses

Background: Hearing loss affects 48 million Americans and up to 86% of all adults with hearing loss may not wear hearing aids. Untreated hearing loss is associated with social withdrawal, depression, stress, loss of income, and dementia. Even so, people still tend not to buy or wear hearing aids for a variety of reasons. One recently suggested solution to this problem is low-cost, over the counter (OTC) hearing aids, nicknamed “hearables” This study evaluated the audibility, cost-acceptability and cosmetic appearance of one OTC, IQBuds BOOST.

Methods: Fourteen men and 12 women over 50 years with a hearing loss participated in …

Induction Of Nocebo Effects By Verbal Suggestions During The Caloric Test, Abbey Weist

Dissertations, 2020-current

The caloric test is the most frequently performed vestibular diagnostic test and is considered the “gold-standard” for the assessment of the peripheral vestibular system. Using a warm or cool stimulus, the caloric test alters the temperature gradient in the vestibular system resulting in nausea and dizziness. The nocebo effect is a phenomenon that can occur when negative expectations result in negative effects. No study has examined whether expectations of nausea and dizziness during the caloric test enhance the experience of unwanted symptoms. The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether a nocebo response can be elicited during the caloric …

Whole Word Vs Phoneme Error Scoring For Audiological Word Recognition Testing, Jennifer C. Arnoult

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate a possible alternative method of scoring for word recognition testing. The current whole word scoring method is inefficient and often inconsistent with a client’s pure tone average scores, and previous research has suggested that phoneme error scoring may be a more effective and accurate scoring method. This project analyzed the audiogram and word recognition test scores of seventeen adult clients. The test used was the standard twenty-five-word list NU-6 test. The researchers analyzed the results from whole word scoring and phoneme error scoring of the same tests and compared the results to …

A Musician Centered Toolkit For Audiologists, Ava Bonavita

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The toolkit for audiologists working with musicians includes a set of materials for use in a musician centered audiology practice. Given the rise in streaming of music by individuals of all ages and the recognition of susceptibility of musicians to hearing loss, the prevalence of hearing loss is on the rise necessitating the need for materials and protocols to better protect, educate, and treat music lovers of all ages who may be prone to hearing loss. Music induced hearing loss typically falls under the category of recreational noise exposure, a subset of noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). Musicians are the …

Cervical Vestibular-Evoked Myogenic Potentials (Cvemps): "Differentiation Of Inter-Neck Emg Symmetry Between Children And Adults", Ellen Jones

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

A cervical Vestibular-Evoked Myogenic Potential (cVEMP) is one of the few objective vestibular diagnostic tests available for pediatric populations. This test evaluates the functionality of the saccule end organ through an inhibitory reflex on the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle that inhibits the level of electromyographic (EMG) activity (Wiener-Vacher, 2013). Because the saccule response is measured as an inhibition of EMG in the SCM, it is imperative that the SCM have a tonic contraction prior to eliciting the response and that the contraction of the SCM is equal on the right and left sides. It is generally accepted that young, healthy adults …

Audiologists’ Preferences In Programming Cochlear Implants, Leanne Browning

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Cochlear implants have become a viable option for those with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss who gain little benefit from hearing aids and have poor word recognition ability. However, the techniques audiologists use to program these devices are not standardized (Sorkin, 2013). There is little data available which analyzes how audiologists handle clinical cochlear implant programming between the top manufacturers. These companies supply default settings in their products but is it unknown how often audiologists use these in practice in the United States.

In the present study, a questionnaire based on previous European data from Vaerenberg et al. (2014) …

Music And Speech Perception In Children Using Sung Speech: Effects Of Neurocognitive Factors, Victoria A. André

Dissertations, 2014-2019

The current study aimed to explore normal-hearing children's ability to utilize pitch and timbre cues and how these findings correlate with neurocognitive factors. Participants were recruited if they had English as their first language and no formal musical training or 3+ years of formal musical training. Twenty normal-hearing children, age 7.5-14.5 years (mean = 10.5; n=20) were recruited for the study. Nonverbal intelligence, receptive vocabulary, and auditory working memory were assessed using subtests of the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test-2, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4, and Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing-2, respectively. Raw scores were used to analyze these neurocognitive abilities in …

Review Of Au.D. Program Curriculums And The Current State Of Audiology Roles And Responsibilities In The United States, Kerri L. Heesemann

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Audiology, a health profession concerned with all auditory impairments and their effect on communication, has rapidly and dramatically changed over the last 70 years of its existence (American Academy of Audiology [AAA], 2004). What began as a field dedicated to helping address veterans with hearing difficulties sustained while in the service, has now become a medical profession with a wide and varied Scope of Practice that requires an entry level a doctoral degree. With the evolution of technology, and knowledge about hearing loss, there has been an increase in the information and knowledge required for best practice. While education standards …

Across Curriculums: A Need For Audiology Instruction For Teachers Of The Deaf And Hard Of Hearing, Jenna M. Morishita

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Objective: The purpose of this project is to gain insight into the requirements of teacher education programs with regard to instruction in audiology for teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing. Though individual teacher preparation programs have vast differences as they pertain to philosophy and methodology, graduates of each of these programs seek to work with children with hearing loss and therefore should have more than a basic understanding of audiology.

Method: The websites and course catalogs (when available) were reviewed for the 48 graduate programs listed on DeafEd.net. Data was collected on courses with the term “audiology” in …

Audiometric Status, Self-Perception Of Hearing Disorders, And Noise Dose In Audio Post-Production Engineers, Laura M. Sinnott

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Numerous studies have assessed the risk of hearing injury for musicians and other sound professionals due to excessive sound exposure, however no studies have investigated whether audio post-production engineers have this same risk. This preliminary study first measured 23 participants’ hearing thresholds and prevalence of audiometric notches. Second, a questionnaire, the Questionnaire for Sound Professionals (QUSP), was designed and administered to determine whether correlations between audiometric status and self-perception of hearing loss and hearing disorders existed. Third, sound dosimetry measurements were conducted at film audio post-production studios to assess whether this population is at risk for permanent hearing loss due …

The Psychosocial Effects Of Hearing Loss On Adults, Holly Reed

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Adults with hearing loss report experiencing isolation, depression, a decreased satisfaction with their self - image and quality of life, cognitive problems and communication obstacles. These effects of a hearing loss can manifest in social situations, within the family and even at the workplace. How one copes with their hearing loss can affect how much of an impact their hearing loss has on their lives as well as what rehabilitative programs or assistive technology they may seek out. It is important to for audiologists to understand the psychosocial effects of hearing loss, how they affect the individual in the workplace …