Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2022

Document Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

Au.D.

Program

Audiology

Advisor

Brett A. Martin

Advisor

Michelle MacRoy-Higgins

Subject Categories

Speech Pathology and Audiology

Keywords

Cochlear implant evaluations, Spanish-speaking adults, Spanish AzBio, Spanish HINT

Abstract

Background. As the Hispanic population in the U.S. continues to increase, audiologists need valid and reliable speech perception materials in Spanish to be able to offer evidence-based, high quality hearing health care to this population. The purpose of this study was to investigate current trends in CI evaluations of Spanish-speaking adults in clinics around the country, with a specific focus on sentence perception tests (Part 1). An additional goal was to analyze and compare the linguistical content of the Spanish sentence perception tests found to be the most commonly used among clinicians (Part 2).

Methods. A questionnaire was created and distributed nationwide to cochlear implant audiologists. The results of the survey were used to identify the most common sentence perception tests used to evaluate Spanish-speaking CI candidates and recipients. The tests were analyzed in terms of the sentence length, grammatical structure, verb tense and sentence difficulty.

Results. The results of the survey revealed that the Spanish AzBio and the Spanish HINT are the most commonly used Spanish sentence perception tests. The results of the analysis showed that statistically, the S-AzBio contains sentences that are linguistically more complex as compared to the S-HINT in terms of the sentence length, sentence type, and sentence difficulty.

Discussion and Conclusion. The results of the study revealed that although the S-AzBio and the S-HINT are the most commonly used test for evaluations of Spanish-speaking CI candidates and recipients there are limitations to these tests. The results of the study could help clinicians determine which test is best for a given patient so that effective cochlear implant evaluations of Spanish-speaking candidates and recipients can be performed.

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