Measurement of Spectro-Temporal Processing by Cochlear Implant Users: Effects of Stimulus Level and Validation of an Online Implementation.

Abstract

Objectives:Evaluating adjustments to cochlear implant (CI) settings is challenging as recipients need time to adapt for optimal speech test performance. The Spectro-Temporal Ripple for Investigating Processor EffectivenesS (STRIPES) test, a language-independent measure of spectro-temporal resolution, has been validated with Advanced Bionics and Cochlear CI systems. This study investigates if performance on the STRIPES test varies with presentation level in a loudspeaker setup and its relationship with outcomes on the British Coordinate Response Measure (CRM) test. Additionally, it extends the use of STRIPES and webSTRIPES tests to MedEl CI systems.Design:A prospective, single-blind, two-session repeated-measures study was conducted with 10 CI users over six months. The first session included three blocks: pre-test webSTRIPES, STRIPES at three loudspeaker presentation levels (50, 65, and 75 dB SPL), and post-test webSTRIPES. The second session measured the speech reception threshold (SRT70) for CRM sentences with a time-reversed speech masker, presented at the same three levels.Results:Presentation level did not significantly affect STRIPES density thresholds or SRT70 for CRM sentences. A significant correlation was found between STRIPES loudspeaker and webSTRIPES thresholds. WebSTRIPES showed good-to-excellent test-retest reliability. The correlation between CRM SRT70 and STRIPES thresholds was not statistically significant.Conclusion:STRIPES and webSTRIPES density threshold scores can be reliably measured with MedEl CI systems, unaffected by presentation level. The STRIPES test is a promising tool for assessing adult CI listener outcomes without requiring prolonged acclimatization to programming changes.