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Takanen M, Strahl S, Schwarz K. Insights Into Electrophysiological Metrics of Cochlear Health in Cochlear Implant Users Using a Computational Model. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol 2024; 25:63-78. [PMID: 38278970 PMCID: PMC10907331 DOI: 10.1007/s10162-023-00924-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/28/2024] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE The hearing outcomes of cochlear implant users depend on the functional status of the electrode-neuron interface inside the cochlea. This can be assessed by measuring electrically evoked compound action potentials (eCAPs). Variations in cochlear neural health and survival are reflected in eCAP-based metrics. The difficulty in translating promising results from animal studies into clinical use has raised questions about to what degree eCAP-based metrics are influenced by non-neural factors. Here, we addressed these questions using a computational model. METHODS A 2-D computational model was designed to simulate how electrical signals from the stimulating electrode reach the auditory nerve fibers distributed along the cochlea, evoking action potentials that can be recorded as compound responses at the recording electrodes. Effects of physiologically relevant variations in neural survival and in electrode-neuron and stimulating-recording electrode distances on eCAP amplitude growth functions (AGFs) were investigated. RESULTS In line with existing literature, the predicted eCAP AGF slopes and the inter-phase gap (IPG) effects depended on the neural survival, but only when the IPG effect was calculated as the difference between the slopes of the two AGFs expressed in linear input-output scale. As expected, shallower eCAP AGF slopes were obtained for increased stimulating-recording electrode distance and larger eCAP thresholds for greater electrode-neuron distance. These non-neural factors had also minor interference on the predicted IPG effect. CONCLUSIONS The model predictions demonstrate previously found dependencies of eCAP metrics on neural survival and non-neural aspects. The present findings confirm data from animal studies and provide insights into applying described metrics in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marko Takanen
- MED-EL Medical Electronics, Research and Development, Fürstenweg 77a, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria.
| | - Stefan Strahl
- MED-EL Medical Electronics, Research and Development, Fürstenweg 77a, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Konrad Schwarz
- MED-EL Medical Electronics, Research and Development, Fürstenweg 77a, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria
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2
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Kipping D, Nogueira W. A Computational Model of a Single Auditory Nerve Fiber for Electric-Acoustic Stimulation. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol 2022; 23:835-858. [PMID: 36333573 PMCID: PMC9789289 DOI: 10.1007/s10162-022-00870-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Cochlear implant (CI) recipients with preserved acoustic low-frequency hearing in the implanted ear are a growing group among traditional CI users who benefit from hybrid electric-acoustic stimulation (EAS). However, combined ipsilateral electric and acoustic stimulation also introduces interactions between the two modalities that can affect the performance of EAS users. A computational model of a single auditory nerve fiber that is excited by EAS was developed to study the interaction between electric and acoustic stimulation. Two existing models of sole electric or acoustic stimulation were coupled to simulate responses to combined EAS. Different methods of combining both models were implemented. In the coupled model variant, the refractoriness of the simulated fiber leads to suppressive interaction between electrically evoked and acoustically evoked spikes as well as spontaneous activity. The second model variant is an uncoupled EAS model without electric-acoustic interaction. By comparing predictions between the coupled and the noninteracting EAS model, it was possible to infer electric-acoustic interaction at the level of the auditory nerve. The EAS model was used to simulate fiber populations with realistic inter-unit variability, where each unit was represented by the single-fiber model. Predicted thresholds and dynamic ranges, spike rates, latencies, jitter, and vector strengths were compared to empirical data. The presented EAS model provides a framework for future studies of peripheral electric-acoustic interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Kipping
- Department of Otolaryngology, Hannover Medical School (MHH), Hannover, Germany
- Cluster of Excellence Hearing4all, Hannover, Germany
| | - Waldo Nogueira
- Department of Otolaryngology, Hannover Medical School (MHH), Hannover, Germany
- Cluster of Excellence Hearing4all, Hannover, Germany
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3
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Comparison of response properties of the electrically stimulated auditory nerve reported in human listeners and in animal models. Hear Res 2022; 426:108643. [PMID: 36343534 PMCID: PMC9986845 DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2022.108643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Revised: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Cochlear implants (CIs) provide acoustic information to implanted patients by electrically stimulating nearby auditory nerve fibers (ANFs) which then transmit the information to higher-level neural structures for further processing and interpretation. Computational models that simulate ANF responses to CI stimuli enable the exploration of the mechanisms underlying CI performance beyond the capacity of in vivo experimentation alone. However, all ANF models developed to date utilize to some extent anatomical/morphometric data, biophysical properties and/or physiological data measured in non-human animal models. This review compares response properties of the electrically stimulated auditory nerve (AN) in human listeners and different mammalian models. Properties of AN responses to single pulse stimulation, paired-pulse stimulation, and pulse-train stimulation are presented. While some AN response properties are similar between human listeners and animal models (e.g., increased AN sensitivity to single pulse stimuli with long interphase gaps), there are some significant differences. For example, the AN of most animal models is typically more sensitive to cathodic stimulation while the AN of human listeners is generally more sensitive to anodic stimulation. Additionally, there are substantial differences in the speed of recovery from neural adaptation between animal models and human listeners. Therefore, results from animal models cannot be simply translated to human listeners. Recognizing the differences in responses of the AN to electrical stimulation between humans and other mammals is an important step for creating ANF models that are more applicable to various human CI patient populations.
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Takanen M, Seeber BU. A Phenomenological Model Reproducing Temporal Response Characteristics of an Electrically Stimulated Auditory Nerve Fiber. Trends Hear 2022; 26:23312165221117079. [PMID: 36071660 PMCID: PMC9459496 DOI: 10.1177/23312165221117079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Revised: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability of cochlear implants (CIs) to restore hearing to profoundly deaf people is based on direct electrical stimulation of the auditory nerve fibers (ANFs). Still, CI users do not achieve as good hearing outcomes as their normal-hearing peers. The development and optimization of CI stimulation strategies to reduce that gap could benefit from computational models that can predict responses evoked by different stimulation patterns, particularly temporal responses for coding of temporal fine structure information. To that end, we present the sequential biphasic leaky integrate-and-fire (S-BLIF) model for the ANF response to various pulse shapes and temporal sequences. The phenomenological S-BLIF model is adapted from the earlier BLIF model that can reproduce neurophysiological single-fiber cat ANF data from single-pulse stimulations. It was extended with elements that simulate refractoriness, facilitation, accommodation and long-term adaptation by affecting the threshold value of the model momentarily after supra- and subthreshold stimulation. Evaluation of the model demonstrated that it can reproduce neurophysiological data from single neuron recordings involving temporal phenomena related to inter-pulse interactions. Specifically, data for refractoriness, facilitation, accommodation and spike-rate adaptation can be reproduced. In addition, the model can account for effects of pulse rate on the synchrony between the pulsatile input and the spike-train output. Consequently, the model offers a versatile tool for testing new coding strategies for, e.g., temporal fine structure using pseudo-monophasic pulses, and for estimating the status of the electrode-neuron interface in the CI user's cochlea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marko Takanen
- Audio Information Processing, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Bernhard U. Seeber
- Audio Information Processing, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
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5
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McKay CM. Applications of Phenomenological Loudness Models to Cochlear Implants. Front Psychol 2021; 11:611517. [PMID: 33519626 PMCID: PMC7838155 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.611517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cochlear implants electrically stimulate surviving auditory neurons in the cochlea to provide severely or profoundly deaf people with access to hearing. Signal processing strategies derive frequency-specific information from the acoustic signal and code amplitude changes in frequency bands onto amplitude changes of current pulses emitted by the tonotopically arranged intracochlear electrodes. This article first describes how parameters of the electrical stimulation influence the loudness evoked and then summarizes two different phenomenological models developed by McKay and colleagues that have been used to explain psychophysical effects of stimulus parameters on loudness, detection, and modulation detection. The Temporal Model is applied to single-electrode stimuli and integrates cochlear neural excitation using a central temporal integration window analogous to that used in models of normal hearing. Perceptual decisions are made using decision criteria applied to the output of the integrator. By fitting the model parameters to a variety of psychophysical data, inferences can be made about how electrical stimulus parameters influence neural excitation in the cochlea. The Detailed Model is applied to multi-electrode stimuli, and includes effects of electrode interaction at a cochlear level and a transform between integrated excitation and specific loudness. The Practical Method of loudness estimation is a simplification of the Detailed Model and can be used to estimate the relative loudness of any multi-electrode pulsatile stimuli without the need to model excitation at the cochlear level. Clinical applications of these models to novel sound processing strategies are described.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colette M. McKay
- Bionics Institute, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Medical Bionics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
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Casciola M, Xiao S, Apollonio F, Paffi A, Liberti M, Muratori C, Pakhomov AG. Cancellation of nerve excitation by the reversal of nanosecond stimulus polarity and its relevance to the gating time of sodium channels. Cell Mol Life Sci 2019; 76:4539-4550. [PMID: 31055644 PMCID: PMC11105181 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-019-03126-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2019] [Revised: 04/19/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The initiation of action potentials (APs) by membrane depolarization occurs after a brief vulnerability period, during which excitation can be abolished by the reversal of the stimulus polarity. This vulnerability period is determined by the time needed for gating of voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSC). We compared nerve excitation by ultra-short uni- and bipolar stimuli to define the time frame of bipolar cancellation and of AP initiation. Propagating APs in isolated frog sciatic nerve were elicited by cathodic pulses (200 ns-300 µs), followed by an anodic (canceling) pulse of the same duration after a 0-200-µs delay. We found that the earliest and the latest boundaries for opening the critical number of VGSC needed to initiate AP are, respectively, between 11 and 20 µs and between 100 and 200 µs after the onset of depolarization. Stronger depolarization accelerated AP initiation, apparently due to faster VGSC opening, but not beyond the 11-µs limit. Bipolar cancellation was augmented by reducing pulse duration, shortening the delay between pulses, decreasing the amplitude of the cathodic pulse, and increasing the amplitude of the anodic one. Some of these characteristics contrasted the bipolar cancellation of cell membrane electroporation (Pakhomov et al. in Bioelectrochemistry 122:123-133, 2018; Gianulis et al. in Bioelectrochemistry 119:10-19, 2017), suggesting different mechanisms. The ratio of nerve excitation thresholds for a unipolar cathodic pulse and a symmetrical bipolar pulse increased as a power function as the pulse duration decreased, in remarkable agreement with the predictions of SENN model of nerve excitation (Reilly and Diamant in Health Phys 83(3):356-365, 2002).
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Affiliation(s)
- Maura Casciola
- Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University, 4211 Monarch Way, Suite 300, Norfolk, VA, 23508, USA
| | - Shu Xiao
- Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University, 4211 Monarch Way, Suite 300, Norfolk, VA, 23508, USA
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA
| | - Francesca Apollonio
- Department of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications (D.I.E.T.), Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessandra Paffi
- Department of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications (D.I.E.T.), Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Micaela Liberti
- Department of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications (D.I.E.T.), Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia Muratori
- Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University, 4211 Monarch Way, Suite 300, Norfolk, VA, 23508, USA
| | - Andrei G Pakhomov
- Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University, 4211 Monarch Way, Suite 300, Norfolk, VA, 23508, USA.
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Blackburn CL, Kitterick PT, Jones G, Sumner CJ, Stacey PC. Visual Speech Benefit in Clear and Degraded Speech Depends on the Auditory Intelligibility of the Talker and the Number of Background Talkers. Trends Hear 2019; 23:2331216519837866. [PMID: 30909814 PMCID: PMC6435873 DOI: 10.1177/2331216519837866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceiving speech in background noise presents a significant challenge to listeners. Intelligibility can be improved by seeing the face of a talker. This is of particular value to hearing impaired people and users of cochlear implants. It is well known that auditory-only speech understanding depends on factors beyond audibility. How these factors impact on the audio-visual integration of speech is poorly understood. We investigated audio-visual integration when either the interfering background speech (Experiment 1) or intelligibility of the target talkers (Experiment 2) was manipulated. Clear speech was also contrasted with sine-wave vocoded speech to mimic the loss of temporal fine structure with a cochlear implant. Experiment 1 showed that for clear speech, the visual speech benefit was unaffected by the number of background talkers. For vocoded speech, a larger benefit was found when there was only one background talker. Experiment 2 showed that visual speech benefit depended upon the audio intelligibility of the talker and increased as intelligibility decreased. Degrading the speech by vocoding resulted in even greater benefit from visual speech information. A single “independent noise” signal detection theory model predicted the overall visual speech benefit in some conditions but could not predict the different levels of benefit across variations in the background or target talkers. This suggests that, similar to audio-only speech intelligibility, the integration of audio-visual speech cues may be functionally dependent on factors other than audibility and task difficulty, and that clinicians and researchers should carefully consider the characteristics of their stimuli when assessing audio-visual integration.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pádraig T Kitterick
- 2 Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, UK.,3 Division of Clinical Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, UK
| | - Gary Jones
- 1 Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, UK
| | - Christian J Sumner
- 1 Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, UK.,4 Medical Research Council Institute of Hearing Research, Nottingham, UK
| | - Paula C Stacey
- 1 Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, UK
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8
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Joshi SN, Dau T, Epp B. A Model of Electrically Stimulated Auditory Nerve Fiber Responses with Peripheral and Central Sites of Spike Generation. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol 2017; 18:323-342. [PMID: 28054149 PMCID: PMC5352616 DOI: 10.1007/s10162-016-0608-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 12/05/2016] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
A computational model of cat auditory nerve fiber (ANF) responses to electrical stimulation is presented. The model assumes that (1) there exist at least two sites of spike generation along the ANF and (2) both an anodic (positive) and a cathodic (negative) charge in isolation can evoke a spike. A single ANF is modeled as a network of two exponential integrate-and-fire point-neuron models, referred to as peripheral and central axons of the ANF. The peripheral axon is excited by the cathodic charge, inhibited by the anodic charge, and exhibits longer spike latencies than the central axon; the central axon is excited by the anodic charge, inhibited by the cathodic charge, and exhibits shorter spike latencies than the peripheral axon. The model also includes subthreshold and suprathreshold adaptive feedback loops which continuously modify the membrane potential and can account for effects of facilitation, accommodation, refractoriness, and spike-rate adaptation in ANF. Although the model is parameterized using data for either single or paired pulse stimulation with monophasic rectangular pulses, it correctly predicts effects of various stimulus pulse shapes, stimulation pulse rates, and level on the neural response statistics. The model may serve as a framework to explore the effects of different stimulus parameters on psychophysical performance measured in cochlear implant listeners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suyash Narendra Joshi
- Hearing Systems group, Technical University of Denmark, Ørsteds Plads Building 352, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Torsten Dau
- Hearing Systems group, Technical University of Denmark, Ørsteds Plads Building 352, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Bastian Epp
- Hearing Systems group, Technical University of Denmark, Ørsteds Plads Building 352, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
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9
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Takanen M, Bruce IC, Seeber BU. Phenomenological modelling of electrically stimulated auditory nerve fibers: A review. NETWORK (BRISTOL, ENGLAND) 2016; 27:157-185. [PMID: 27573993 DOI: 10.1080/0954898x.2016.1219412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Auditory nerve fibers (ANFs) play a crucial role in hearing by encoding and transporting the synaptic input from inner hair cells into afferent spiking information for higher stages of the auditory system. If the inner hair cells are degenerated, cochlear implants may restore hearing by directly stimulating the ANFs. The response of an ANF is affected by several characteristics of the electrical stimulus and of the ANF, and neurophysiological measurements are needed to know how the ANF responds to a particular stimulus. However, recording from individual nerve fibers in humans is not feasible and obtaining compound neural or psychophysical responses is often time-consuming. This motivates the design and use of models to estimate the ANF response to the electrical stimulation. Phenomenological models reproduce the ANF response based on a simplified description of ANF functionality and on a limited parameter space by not directly describing detailed biophysical mechanisms. Here, we give an overview of phenomenological models published to date and demonstrate how different modeling approaches can account for the diverse phenomena affecting the ANF response. To highlight the success achieved in designing such models, we also describe a number of applications of phenomenological models to predict percepts of cochlear implant listeners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marko Takanen
- a Audio Information Processing, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , Technical University of Munich , Munich , Germany
| | - Ian C Bruce
- b Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , McMaster University , Hamilton , ON , Canada
| | - Bernhard U Seeber
- a Audio Information Processing, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , Technical University of Munich , Munich , Germany
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Stacey PC, Kitterick PT, Morris SD, Sumner CJ. The contribution of visual information to the perception of speech in noise with and without informative temporal fine structure. Hear Res 2016; 336:17-28. [PMID: 27085797 PMCID: PMC5706637 DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2016.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2015] [Revised: 04/06/2016] [Accepted: 04/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
Understanding what is said in demanding listening situations is assisted greatly by looking at the face of a talker. Previous studies have observed that normal-hearing listeners can benefit from this visual information when a talker's voice is presented in background noise. These benefits have also been observed in quiet listening conditions in cochlear-implant users, whose device does not convey the informative temporal fine structure cues in speech, and when normal-hearing individuals listen to speech processed to remove these informative temporal fine structure cues. The current study (1) characterised the benefits of visual information when listening in background noise; and (2) used sine-wave vocoding to compare the size of the visual benefit when speech is presented with or without informative temporal fine structure. The accuracy with which normal-hearing individuals reported words in spoken sentences was assessed across three experiments. The availability of visual information and informative temporal fine structure cues was varied within and across the experiments. The results showed that visual benefit was observed using open- and closed-set tests of speech perception. The size of the benefit increased when informative temporal fine structure cues were removed. This finding suggests that visual information may play an important role in the ability of cochlear-implant users to understand speech in many everyday situations. Models of audio-visual integration were able to account for the additional benefit of visual information when speech was degraded and suggested that auditory and visual information was being integrated in a similar way in all conditions. The modelling results were consistent with the notion that audio-visual benefit is derived from the optimal combination of auditory and visual sensory cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula C Stacey
- Division of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Burton Street, Nottingham NG1 4BU, UK.
| | - Pádraig T Kitterick
- NIHR Nottingham Hearing Biomedical Research Unit, Ropewalk House, 113 The Ropewalk, Nottingham NG1 5DU, UK.
| | - Saffron D Morris
- MRC Institute of Hearing Research, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK.
| | - Christian J Sumner
- MRC Institute of Hearing Research, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK.
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Seeber BU, Bruce IC. The history and future of neural modeling for cochlear implants. NETWORK (BRISTOL, ENGLAND) 2016; 27:53-66. [PMID: 27726506 DOI: 10.1080/0954898x.2016.1223365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
This special issue of Network: Computation in Neural Systems on the topic of "Computational models of the electrically stimulated auditory system" incorporates review articles spanning a wide range of approaches to modeling cochlear implant stimulation of the auditory system. The purpose of this overview paper is to provide a historical context for the different modeling endeavors and to point toward how computational modeling could play a key role in the understanding, evaluation, and improvement of cochlear implants in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernhard U Seeber
- a Audio Information Processing, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , Technical University of Munich , Munich , Germany
| | - Ian C Bruce
- b Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , McMaster University , Hamilton , Ontario , Canada
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