Tympanojugular paragangliomas (TJPs) with intradural extension can be successfully treated by a single or staged procedure with low surgical morbidity.
This study assessed the effects of age and working memory capacity on dichotic listening and temporal sequencing. Double Dichotic Digit Test (DDT), Pitch Pattern Sequence Test (PPST) and Digit Span Test were administered on 40 healthy adults with hearing thresholds of not greater than 30 dB HL across octave frequencies from 250 to 4000 Hz. Twenty young (20-30 years old) and 20 older (50-65 years old) adults were included in the study. Results showed that the older group had significantly lower scores in DDT, PPST and working memory capacity measures than the young subjects. Working memory capacity was positively correlated with PPST but not with DDT, suggesting that DDT might be more auditory-modality-specific than PPST.
The purposes of this study were to: (1) compare medial olivocochlear system (MOCS) functioning and speech perception in noise in young and older adults and (2) to quantify the correlation between MOCS functioning and speech perception in noise. Measurements were taken in 20 young (mean 26.3 +/- 2.1 years) and 20 older adults (mean 55.2 +/- 2.8 years). Contralateral distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) suppression was measured to assess MOCS functioning. Speech perception in noise was evaluated using the Hearing in Noise Test in noise-ipsilateral, noise-front and noise-contralateral test conditions. The results revealed that the older group had a significantly lower high-frequency (3-8 kHz) contralateral DPOAE suppression, and performed more poorly in the noise-ipsilateral condition than the younger group. However, there was no correlation between contralateral DPOAE suppression and speech perception in noise. This study suggests that poor speech perception performance in noise experienced by older adults might be due to a decline in medial olivocochlear functioning, among other factors.