We discuss in this paper the feature extraction and signal reconstruction of air and bone conduction voices in the time domain by applying the independent component analysis (ICA). The basis functions of the air and bone conduction voices extracted by applying ICA are shown first, and then the quality of the signal reconstruction by using several of those basis functions is investigated from th...

UNLABELLED Acoustic radiation is the sound energy escape from a bone vibrator that may be detected by air conduction mechanisms. The presence of acoustic radiation may result in an unreal bone conduction threshold, promoting an unreal air/bone gap in the high frequencies. AIM aim to analyze the acoustic radiation effect on the extension of air/bone gap at 2,000, 3,000 and 4,000 Hz. MATERIAL...

In a prospective study, 165 total stapedectomies and 152 small fenestra stapedotomies were performed by three experienced surgeons between 2001 and 2003. In total stapedectomy, a self-made Schuknecht steel wire connective tissue prosthesis, and in stapedotomy, a 0.6-mm platinum wire Teflon piston was used. The pre- and postoperative bone conduction thresholds were compared at the frequencies 25...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether middle ear cholesteatoma is associated with, sensorineural hearing loss, and whether patient age, cholesteatoma growth pattern, or, air bone gap size contribute to inner ear impairment. STUDY DESIGN Cross-sectional comparative. SETTING A tertiary hospital. PATIENTS The subjects were 115 patients with middle ear cholesteatoma in one ear, and normal video-otos...

Active bone conduction or middle ear implants (AHI) provide an option for hearing rehabilitation in malformation cases. We present our data regarding the surgical procedure and outcome of both systems.

BACKGROUND Many situations may raise difficulties when obtaining hearing thresholds for each ear separately. These situations demand the use of masking. The plateau method has been used for more than four decades. Nevertheless, in 2004 a different masking protocol was suggested, called the optimized method, to replace the plateau method in specific cases. AIM To evaluate the feasibility of tw...

Two studies illustrate the use of the auditory steady-state response (ASSR) in the pediatric clinical audiology setting. A protocol for estimating bone-conduction thresholds from ASSR was developed. Bone-conducted narrow-band noise was used to mask the ASSR for a 1.0-kHz modulated tone. The amount of bone-conducted noise needed to mask the ASSR may distinguish between infants and children with ...

BACKGROUND Implantable devices have been proposed as an alternative to hearing aids and auditory canal reconstruction in patients with microtia (congenital aural atresia), which includes a malformation of the external and middle ear. This report is of two rare cases of microtia associated with congenital stapes ankylosis treated with an implantable device and describes the treatment outcomes. C...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate patients' opinions of the bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA) compared with a conventional hearing aid. DESIGN Prospective study with two questionnaires. Questionnaire A consisted of questions that compared patients' previous hearing aid with the BAHA. Questionnaire B consisted of questions about the patients' experiences with the hearing aids. PATIENTS Sixty-five consecu...