Efficacy of Auditory Training and Combined Auditory-working-memory Training in Improving Communication in Older Adults

NCT05399264 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 2021-2022-0134
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 120
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Using a randomized controlled trial, we are going to examine whether a training program that incorporates both auditory training and working memory training (AT-WMT) would generate significantly better results in communication and cognition than an auditory training program and a mindfulness training program (active-control). Participants are 120 older adults (40 per group) with untreated mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing impairment .

Conditions

Hearing Loss

Keywords

Auditory training; Working memory; Speech perception; Older adults; Hearing loss

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• The Cantonese version of the Hearing in Noise Test (CHINT) (Changes are being assessed)

  The Cantonese version of the Hearing in Noise Test (CHINT) (Wong \& Soli, 2005) will be used to measure sentence perception in noise. The tool contains 12 lists of 20 sentences, and each sentence comprises 10 words. A high inter-list reliability has been previously demonstrated, which suggests that the lists are equivalent and, therefore, consistent results can be obtained using any of the lists (Wong et al., 2005).

  One week before the training, one day before the training, one day after the training, three months after the training

• The Cantonese version of the reading span test (CRST) (Changes are being assessed)

  The Cantonese version of the reading span test (CRST) with dual task design will be used to measure WM. It was developed based on the German reading span test (Carroll et al., 2015). The reliability and validity of the CRST have been examined to confirm that the CRST is a suitable test for investigating verbal WM (Cheung, 2021). The CRST comprises 54 six-word sentences. The sentences are presented in different set sizes (i.e., 3, 4, 5, and 6 sentences) in random order. The participants are expected to read aloud the sentences presented on a computer screen and judge whether the sentence is semantically correct. After reading aloud all sentences in a given sentence set, the participants will be asked to recall the first or last two words of each sentence in the set. The reading span score is based on the second task: the total number of words recalled. Approximately 20 minutes is needed to complete the test.

  One week before the training, one day before the training, one day after the training, three months after the training

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• The CogState Battery (Changes are being assessed)

  One week before the training, one day before the training, one day after the training, three months after the training

• The Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing scale (SSQHS) (Changes are being assessed)

  One week before the training, one day before the training, one day after the training, three months after the training

• Auditory Brainstem Responses to Complex Sounds (Changes are being assessed)

  One week before the training, one day before the training, one day after the training, three months after the training

Study Arms (3)

Auditory-working memory training group

EXPERIMENTAL

The auditory-working memory training (AT-WMT) program is home-delivered, non-clinician-administered, and computer-based. That is, training will be self-paced and administered by the participants themselves at home using a computer. A software program has been created to facilitate the administration. Participants will spend one hour per day and five days per week for 4 weeks on training. During the training, the following two adaptive tasks will be administered simultaneously: repeating the sentences masked by noise (i.e., AT component) and recalling the first or the final two words of all sentences in a given sentence set (i.e., WMT component).

Behavioral: Auditory-working memory training program

Adaptive Auditory training group

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

The sentences used in the AT program are the same as those in the AT-WMT program. However, only the AT component (i.e., adaptive sentence perception in noise) of the AT-WMT program is required in the AT program. Participants do not need to recall the first or the final two words of the sentences. The same software in the experimental group will be used. Participants will spend one hour per day and five days per week for 4 weeks on training.

Behavioral: Auditory training program

Mindfulness training group

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Participants in this group will participate in a mindfulness training program using newlife.330 (Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, 2018) which is a Cantonese online platform for self-guided mindfulness training. The time and computer use of the active-control group will match to those of the above two groups.

Behavioral: Mindfulness training program

Interventions

Auditory-working memory training program BEHAVIORAL

The AT-WMT program is comprised of 1,200 daily used sentences either created or selected from newspapers, books, TV programs and magazines by the research assistants. The sentences are political-, cultural-, and religious-neutral sentences. Each of them contains 10 words. Noise was recorded from the upper and lower decks of a bus, in a café, a Chinese restaurant, an MTR (the Mass Transit Railway) carriage, and from a street. During the training, the following two adaptive tasks will be administered simultaneously: repeating the sentences masked by noise (i.e., AT component) and recalling the first or the final two words of all sentences in a given sentence set (i.e., WMT component).

Auditory-working memory training group

Auditory training program BEHAVIORAL

During the training, an adaptive speech-in-noise perception task will be administered. Specifically, the sentences in a sentence set will be presented binaurally using a headphone at a level the listeners felt is comfortable. The trainees are expected to immediately repeat each noise-masked sentence after hearing it. If they cannot repeat the sentence, then the sound intensity of the noise will be automatically decreased (step size = 2 dB) until the sentence can be correctly repeated. If the sentence can be repeated at the first attempt, then the intensity of the noise will be automatically increased by 2 dB in the next sentence. To provide feedback, the targeted sentence will be replaced by an asterisk and only shown after clicking the sentence.

Adaptive Auditory training group

Mindfulness training program BEHAVIORAL

Participants in this group will participate in a mindfulness training program using newlife.330 (Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, 2018) which is a Cantonese online platform for self-guided mindfulness training.

Mindfulness training group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 55 Years - 80 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Native Cantonese speakers and having been living in Hong Kong for at least 20 years.
• Aged between 55 and 80 years.
• Normal cognitive function, as screened with the Hong Kong version of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (HK-MoCA) with a cutoff of 18/19.
• Mild-to-moderate sensorineural HI, in which the four-frequency pure-tone average at 500, 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz of the better ear is between 26 and 55 dB HL.

You may not qualify if:

• Outer or middle ear pathologies.
• Wearing hearing aids or cochlear implants.
• No computers and internet access at home.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Education University of Hong Kong: lead

Related Publications (6)

• Wong LL, Soli SD. Development of the Cantonese Hearing In Noise Test (CHINT). Ear Hear. 2005 Jun;26(3):276-89. doi: 10.1097/00003446-200506000-00004.

  PMID: 15937409 BACKGROUND

• Anderson S, Parbery-Clark A, Yi HG, Kraus N. A neural basis of speech-in-noise perception in older adults. Ear Hear. 2011 Nov-Dec;32(6):750-7. doi: 10.1097/AUD.0b013e31822229d3.

  PMID: 21730859 BACKGROUND

• Anderson S, Kraus N. Sensory-cognitive interaction in the neural encoding of speech in noise: a review. J Am Acad Audiol. 2010 Oct;21(9):575-85. doi: 10.3766/jaaa.21.9.3.

  PMID: 21241645 BACKGROUND

• Carroll R, Meis M, Schulte M, Vormann M, Kiessling J, Meister H. Development of a German reading span test with dual task design for application in cognitive hearing research. Int J Audiol. 2015 Feb;54(2):136-41. doi: 10.3109/14992027.2014.952458. Epub 2014 Sep 8.

  PMID: 25195607 BACKGROUND

• Zhong N, Jiang H, Wu J, Chen H, Lin S, Zhao Y, Du J, Ma X, Chen C, Gao C, Hashimoto K, Zhao M. Reliability and validity of the CogState battery Chinese language version in schizophrenia. PLoS One. 2013 Sep 2;8(9):e74258. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074258. eCollection 2013.

  PMID: 24023931 BACKGROUND

• Gatehouse S, Noble W. The Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ). Int J Audiol. 2004 Feb;43(2):85-99. doi: 10.1080/14992020400050014.

  PMID: 15035561 BACKGROUND

Related Links

• platform used for the mindfulness training

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hearing Loss

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Hearing Disorders; Ear Diseases; Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases; Sensation Disorders; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Officials

• Chen Yuan, PhD

  The Education University of Hong Kong

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Yuan Chen, PhD

CONTACT

59871023; cheny@eduhk.hk

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: QUADRUPLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: May 11, 2022
• First Posted: June 1, 2022
• Study Start: June 1, 2023
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2026
• Last Updated: June 1, 2022

Record last verified: 2022-05

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share