Jenni-Marí Potgieter1, De Wet Swanepoel, Hermanus Carel Myburgh2, Cas Smits3. 1. Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, University of Pretoria, South Africa. 2. Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa. 3. Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Section Ear and Hearing, and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This study determined the effect of hearing loss and English-speaking competency on the South African English digits-in-noise hearing test to evaluate its suitability for use across native (N) and non-native (NN) speakers. DESIGN: A prospective cross-sectional cohort study of N and NN English adults with and without sensorineural hearing loss compared pure-tone air conduction thresholds to the speech reception threshold (SRT) recorded with the smartphone digits-in-noise hearing test. A rating scale was used for NN English listeners' self-reported competence in speaking English. This study consisted of 454 adult listeners (164 male, 290 female; range 16 to 90 years), of whom 337 listeners had a best ear four-frequency pure-tone average (4FPTA; 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz) of ≤25 dB HL. RESULTS: A linear regression model identified three predictors of the digits-in-noise SRT, namely, 4FPTA, age, and self-reported English-speaking competence. The NN group with poor self-reported English-speaking competence (≤5/10) performed significantly (p < 0.01) poorer than the N and NN (≥6/10) groups on the digits-in-noise test. Screening characteristics of the test improved with separate cutoff values depending on English-speaking competence for the N and NN groups (≥6/10) and NN group alone (≤5/10). Logistic regression models, which include age in the analysis, showed a further improvement in sensitivity and specificity for both groups (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.962 and 0.903, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported English-speaking competence had a significant influence on the SRT obtained with the smartphone digits- in-noise test. A logistic regression approach considering SRT, self-reported English-speaking competence, and age as predictors of best ear 4FPTA >25 dB HL showed that the test can be used as an accurate hearing screening tool for N and NN English speakers. The smartphone digits-in-noise test, therefore, allows testing in a multilingual population familiar with English digits using dynamic cutoff values that can be chosen according to self-reported English-speaking competence and age.
OBJECTIVES: This study determined the effect of hearing loss and English-speaking competency on the South African English digits-in-noise hearing test to evaluate its suitability for use across native (N) and non-native (NN) speakers. DESIGN: A prospective cross-sectional cohort study of N and NN English adults with and without sensorineural hearing loss compared pure-tone air conduction thresholds to the speech reception threshold (SRT) recorded with the smartphone digits-in-noise hearing test. A rating scale was used for NN English listeners' self-reported competence in speaking English. This study consisted of 454 adult listeners (164 male, 290 female; range 16 to 90 years), of whom 337 listeners had a best ear four-frequency pure-tone average (4FPTA; 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz) of ≤25 dB HL. RESULTS: A linear regression model identified three predictors of the digits-in-noise SRT, namely, 4FPTA, age, and self-reported English-speaking competence. The NN group with poor self-reported English-speaking competence (≤5/10) performed significantly (p < 0.01) poorer than the N and NN (≥6/10) groups on the digits-in-noise test. Screening characteristics of the test improved with separate cutoff values depending on English-speaking competence for the N and NN groups (≥6/10) and NN group alone (≤5/10). Logistic regression models, which include age in the analysis, showed a further improvement in sensitivity and specificity for both groups (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.962 and 0.903, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported English-speaking competence had a significant influence on the SRT obtained with the smartphone digits- in-noise test. A logistic regression approach considering SRT, self-reported English-speaking competence, and age as predictors of best ear 4FPTA >25 dB HL showed that the test can be used as an accurate hearing screening tool for N and NN English speakers. The smartphone digits-in-noise test, therefore, allows testing in a multilingual population familiar with English digits using dynamic cutoff values that can be chosen according to self-reported English-speaking competence and age.
Authors: Danielle Schönborn; Faheema Mahomed Asmail; Karina C De Sousa; Ariane Laplante-Lévesque; David R Moore; Cas Smits; De Wet Swanepoel Journal: Am J Audiol Date: 2020-06-08 Impact factor: 1.493
Authors: David R Moore; Helen Whiston; Melanie Lough; Antonia Marsden; Harvey Dillon; Kevin J Munro; Michael A Stone Journal: Trends Hear Date: 2019 Jan-Dec Impact factor: 3.293