title: Auditory processing abilities in children with chronic otitis media with effusion.
abstract: CONCLUSIONS
  The study results indicate that children with a history of otitis media with effusion (OME) suffer from auditory processing disorder to some degree. The findings support the hypothesis that fluctuating hearing loss may affect central auditory processing during critical periods.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Evidence suggests that prolonged OME in children can result in an auditory processing disorder, presumably because hearing has been disrupted during an important developmental period. A lack of auditory stimulation leads to the abnormal development of the hearing pathways in the brain. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of OME on binaural auditory function and auditory temporal processing.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the present study, the dichotic digit test (DDT) was used for binaural hearing, and the gap in noise (GIN) test was used to evaluate temporal hearing processing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The average values of GIN differed significantly between children with a history of OME and normal controls (p < 0.001). The mean values of the DDT score were significantly different between the two groups (p = 0.002).
authors.affiliation: a Department of Audiology, Faculty of Rehabilitation Science , Hamadan University of Medical Sciences , Hamadan , Iran ;
authors.forename: Bahare
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Khavarghazalani
authors.affiliation: b Faculty of Otolaryngology, School of Medicine , Hamadan University of Medical Sciences & Health Services , Hamadan , Iran ;
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Farahani
authors.affiliation: a Department of Audiology, Faculty of Rehabilitation Science , Hamadan University of Medical Sciences , Hamadan , Iran ;
authors.forename: Maryam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Emadi
authors.affiliation: c Department of Audiology , University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences , Tehran , Iran.
authors.forename: Zahra
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hosseni Dastgerdi
mesh_terms: D001308:Auditory Perceptual Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D004007:Dichotic Listening Tests; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010034:Otitis Media with Effusion / Q000150:complications*
keywords: Auditory processing disorder; auditory temporal processing; binaural auditory function; children; otitis media with effusion