Do face masks affect the way we hear?

<b><br>Aim:</b> The aim of the study was to assess if wearing a face mask, hung from the ears, had an effect on the understanding of speech and the perception of surrounding sounds.</br> <b><br>Materials and Methods:</b> Assessment of auditory perception using verbal noise audiometry in two clinical conditions; without a face mask and with a face mask. To assess the auditory perception ability, two parameters were measured; word recognition score (WRS) and sound intensity at maximal WRS.</br> <b><br>Results:</b> Without wearing facial masks, the maximum values of WRS for the study group ranged from 75% to 100% with 52% of respondents achieved WRS 100%. While wearing face masks, the highest calculated WRS for the study group ranged from 80% to 100%, with 32% of individuals achieved WRS of 100%.</br> <b><br>Conclusion:</b> The wearing of face masks do not change the speech recognition scores. This may indicate a stronger role of psycho-sociological aspects of hearing difficulties during the Covid-19 pandemic.</br>.

Evaluation of quality of life in patients after cochlear implantation surgery in 2014-2017.

INTRODUCTION: Profound hearing loss significantly affects the quality of life of deaf people as well as their families. Observation of the benefit from the use of cochlear implants in deaf patients allows to assess the success of treatment with this method and its impact on the quality of life of these patients. The aim of this study was to determine the quality of life in patient after the cochlear implantation in the material of Department of Phoniatrics and Audiology of the Medical University in Poznan. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved implanted patients who voluntarily joined to the project entitled "Observational study of the implanted patient (Cochlear-IROS)". It has a prospective character, it is an international and long-term study, covering the observation of patients up to three years after implantation. Standardized HUI and SSQ questionnaires were used. 70 patients were included in the analysis, the mean age at the time of the cochlear implantation was 47.6 years. In the research group there were 33 men and 37 women. In the whole group, the patients' age at implantation was at least 18 years, max. 80 years. RESULTS: The results of the SSQ questionnaire, which deals with the self-assessment of hearing ability in everyday situations, indicate that in the subjective assessment of patients one year after surgery the speech hearing improved by 77%, spatial hearing by 84%, and the quality of hearing by 49%. The general quality of life before the first connection of the sound processor according to the HUI questionnaire, the patients rated at 0.49 (0-1 scale, where 0 - corresponds to the death condition and 1 - full health). After one year from the implantation, this rating increased to 0.56. CONCLUSIONS: The implantation of the cochlear implant significantly increases the patient's quality of life, its physical and emotional functioning. Statistically significant better self-assessment of patients mainly concerned hearing speech and spatial hearing - especially after 1 year of connecting the speech processor.

Outcomes of CO2 laser-assisted posterior cordectomy in bilateral vocal cord paralysis in 132 cases.

The purpose of the study was to assess the role of laser-assisted posterior cordectomy in the management of patients with bilateral vocal cord paralysis. We aimed an analysis of 132 consecutive patients treated by CO2 laser posterior cordectomy, aged 38-91, 31% tracheotomized on admission. Cordectomy was performed under microlaryngoscopy using CO2 laser (Lumenis AcuPulse 40 CO2 laser, wavelength 10.6 µm, Lumenis Ltd., Yokneam, Israel). We looked at the number of laser glottic procedures necessary to achieve decannulation in tracheotomized patients and to achieve respiratory comfort in non-tracheotomized subjects and we evaluated the two groups for differences in patient characteristics. In tracheotomized patients, we also assessed factors affecting the success of decannulation and we evaluated the impact of tracheotomy on patients' lives. Decannulation was performed in 63% of tracheotomized patients. In terms of the number of procedures, 54% (14), 19% (5), and 27% (7) tracheotomized vs. 74% (61), 24% (20), and 2% (2) non-tracheotomized subjects underwent one, two, or three procedures, respectively. In the group of tracheotomized patients who were successfully decannulated, the number of multiple laser-assisted procedures was significantly higher than in the group of non-tracheotomized subjects with respiratory comfort after treatment (p = 0.04). Advanced age (> 66 years), comorbidities (diabetes, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)), multiple thyroid surgeries, and tracheotomy below the cricoid cartilage were found to decrease the likelihood of successful decannulation. Posterior cordectomy is a simple method allowing for airway improvement and decannulation in patients with bilateral vocal cord paralysis. It is less effective in tracheotomized subjects with diabetes or GERD, older than 66 years old, after two or more thyroidectomies.

Patient-Related Benefits for Adults with Cochlear Implantation: A Multicultural Longitudinal Observational Study.

OBJECTIVES: To assess subjectively perceived, real-world benefits longitudinally for unilateral cochlear implant (CI) recipients in a multinational population treated routinely. To identify possible predictors of self-reported benefits. DESIGN: This was a prospective, multicenter, repeated-measures study. Self-assessment of performance at preimplantation and postimplantation at 1, 2, and 3 years using standardized, validated, local language versions of the Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ), and the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3) was performed. Outcomes were analyzed using a longitudinal mixed-effects model incorporating country effect. Patient demographics were explored for associations with change over time. SUBJECTS: Two hundred ninety-one routinely treated, unilateral CI recipients, aged 13-81 years, from 9 clinics across 4 countries. RESULTS: Highly significant improvements were observed for all outcome measures (p < 0.0001). Postimplantation, mean outcome scores remained stable beyond 1 year, with notable individual variability. A significant association for one or more outcomes with preimplantation contralateral hearing aid use, telephone use, age at implantation, implantation side, preimplantation comorbidities, dizziness, and tinnitus was observed (p < 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: Longitudinal benefits of CI treatment can be measured using clinically standardized self-assessment tools to provide a holistic view of patient-related benefits in routine clinical practice for aggregated data from multinational populations. Self-reported outcomes can provide medical-based evidence regarding CI treatment to support decision-making by health service providers.

Hypothyroidism Affects Olfactory Evoked Potentials.

Background. Objective electrophysiological methods for investigations of the organ of smell consist in recordings of olfactory cortex responses to specific, time restricted odor stimuli. In hypothyroidism have impaired sense of smell. Material and Methods. Two groups: control of 31 healthy subjects and study group of 21 with hypothyroidism. The inclusion criterion for the study group was the TSH range from 3.54 to 110 µIU/mL. Aim. Assessment of the latency time of evoked responses from the olfactory nerve N1 and the trigeminal nerve N5 using two smells of mint and anise in hypothyroidism. Results. The smell perception in subjective olfactory tests was normal in 85% of the hypothyroid group. Differences were noticed in the objective tests. The detailed intergroup analysis of latency times of recorded cortical responses PN5 and PN1 performed by means between the groups of patients with overt clinical hypothyroidism versus subclinical hypothyroidism demonstrated a significant difference (p < 0.05) whereas no such differences were found between the control group versus subclinical hypothyroidism group (p > 0.05). Conclusion. We can conclude that registration of cortex potentials at irritation of olfactory and trigeminal nerves offers possibilities for using this method as an objective indicator of hypothyroidism severity and prognostic process factor.

Quality of life and hearing after cochlear implant placement in patients over 60 years of age.

OBJECTIVE: Multicenter evaluation of the quality of life and quality of hearing after Nucleus® cochlear implant placement in patients over 60 years of age. REFERENCE AND METHOD: Evaluation was performed in patients receiving cochlear implants after the age of 60 years as a part of the Cochlear-Implanted Recipient Observational Study (Cochlear-IROS). This study is a prospective, international and long-term assessment which enables observation of recipients for up to three years after implantation. Data regarding subjective evaluation of the quality of life and quality of hearing were gathered before the first switch-on of the sound processor and one year afterwards. Standardized questionnaires were used in this evaluation, including Health Utility Index (HUI mk. III) and Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing (SSQ) Scale. Data were also gathered regarding the aetiology of hearing loss, hearing aid usage, tinnitus and vertigo, as well as on the telephone usage and the professional status of recipients. RESULTS: Included in the evaluation, were 20 subjects who were over 60 years old at the moment of the cochlear implant surgery. The study group consisted of 12 men and 8 female patients. The average age of CI recipients at the moment of implantation was 67.8 years (min. 60, max. 80 years). The SSQ questionnaire outcomes regarding self-assessment in the field of ability to hear in everyday situations one year after the surgery indicate that speech understanding increased by 180%, spatial hearing increased by 135 % and quality of hearing increased by 98%. Overall quality of life before the first sound processor switch-on as assessed using the HUI questionnaire was at the level of 0.38 (on 0-1 scale, where 0 equals death, and 1 equals full health). One year after the implantation, this assessment increased by 33% (up to 0.5 on the scale). CONCLUSION: The effectiveness of the cochlear implantation in patients with severe hearing loss after 60 years of age with respect to the quality of life and hearing was confirmed. Statistically significant improvement was demonstrated in the self-assessment of patients in relation to the speech understanding, spatial hearing and quality of hearing, as well as quality of life.