Assessment of a Method to Improve Cochlear Implant Users' Speech Perception in Noisy Environments While Maintaining Their Ability to Determine Where a Sound Originates From

NCT07323862 | Not Yet Recruiting FDA Device

• 2 other identifiers: IRB25-07361R43DC023172-01
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 25
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine if a new algorithm can improve speech perception for cochlear implant users. The main questions it aims to answer \[is/are\]:

• Does the algorithm improve speech perception in noisy environments?
• Does the algorithm allow listeners to determine where a sound is coming from? Participants will
• Listen to and repeat sentences presented in the presence of noise
• Indicate the location that sounds originated from

Conditions

Cochlear Implant Users

Keywords

Beamforming; Speech perception in noise; Localization

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Percent correct scores on speech perception in noise.

  The speech perception in noise test consists of lists of sentences in the presence of multi-talker babble or diffuse noise. The target location will vary across conditions. Participants will need to repeat back as much of the target sentence as they can.

  Enrollment to 9 months

• Root mean square error for sound source localization

  The localization test will involve a target speaker in the presence of multi-speaker babble or diffuse noise. The virtual location of the sound sources will be manipulated and participants will need to indicate the location of the target speaker.

  Enrollment to 9 months

Study Arms (1)

Speech perception and localization with different beamformers

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will listen to stimuli processed by different beamformer algorithms and repeat speech presented in noise and identify the location that sound originated from.

Device: Modifying audio input for cochlear implant processor

Interventions

Modifying audio input for cochlear implant processor DEVICE

Sound will be preprocessed with different beamformer algorithms and presented either through the auxiliary input port or via a streaming device to the participants' cochlear implant processor

Speech perception and localization with different beamformers

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Participants must have bilateral cochlear implants from Cochlear or Advanced Bionics

You may not qualify if:

• Non-native English speakers

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Vortant Technologies, LLC: collaborator
• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD): collaborator
• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: lead

Study Sites (1)

Speech and Hearing Science Building

Champaign, Illinois, 61820, United States

Location

Central Study Contacts

Justin Aronoff, PhD

CONTACT

217 244-2154; jaronoff@illinois.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 6, 2026
• First Posted: January 7, 2026
• Study Start: January 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Last Updated: January 7, 2026

Record last verified: 2025-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Time Frame: The data that will be shared will be made available no later than the time of an associated publication or one year after the end of the performance period. Per the policies of the Illinois Data Bank, data will be available for at least five years after it is first shared.
• Access Criteria: Data that will be shared will be stored in the Illinois Data Bank, a data repository managed by the University of Illinois. The data will be publicly available via the Illinois Data Bank.

Locations

US (1)