Loudness balance between acoustic and electric stimulation by a patient with a multichannel cochlear implant.
Estimates of loudness balance were obtained for acoustically and electrically presented 250 Hz sine signals from a patient who uses the Ineraid multichannel cochlear implant. Acoustic and electric loudness matching was possible because the patient evidenced a 25 dB HL threshold at 250 Hz in his nonimplanted ear. The level of the electrical stimulus in microamperes required for a balance of loudness grew linearly with equal increments in decibels for the acoustic stimulus. These data, in concert with the very limited data from previous studies, provide a rationale for using a logarithmic transformation of acoustic to electric intensity in signal processors for cochlear implants.
Dorman
M F
MF
Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona.
Smith
L
L
Parkin
J L
JL
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000368:Aged; D001302:Audiometry, Speech; D001309:Auditory Threshold; D003054:Cochlear Implants; D012048:Correction of Hearing Impairment; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D006311:Hearing Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008144:Loudness Perception; D008297:Male