- In this video, I'm exploring the real reason
you struggle to hear in background noise, coming up.
(funky music)
- Hi guys, Cliff Olson, doctor of audiology,
and founder of Applied Hearing Solutions
in Phoenix, Arizona, and on this channel,
I cover a bunch of hearing related information
to help make you a better informed consumer.
So if you're into that,
make sure you hit that subscribe button.
And don't forget to click the bell to
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You know that feeling of complete mental
and physical exhaustion that you get
inside of a noisy environment,
straining to hear someone who's talking to you?
That is, if you don't completely avoid
those situations altogether.
The reason you get this feeling
is because it takes a lot of work for your brain
to actually separate speech from background noise.
This separation of speech and noise
becomes increasingly more difficult
if you have a hearing loss,
because less auditory information can make it
up to the auditory processing centers of your brain.
There is not a single person with hearing loss
that does not wanna hear better in background noise,
and this leads us to constantly look for a hearing aid
that can do a better job of separating speech and noise.
The problem is relying only
on state-of-the-art hearing aid technology
to help separate speech from the background noise
overlooks perhaps the most important factor
when it comes to being able to do this.
And that factor is cognition.
In a recent article published in "Ear and Hearing,"
titled "Listening Effort: How the Cognitive Consequences
of Acoustic Challenge Are Reflected in Brain and Behavior,"
the author stated that, "Listening to degraded speech
is a challenging task that requires listeners
to devote additional cognitive resources
for successful understanding,
reflected in greater neural activity,
increased pupil dilation, and behavior."
The author went on to say that, "Acoustic challenge
is thus not merely an auditory problem,
but it significantly affects a variety
of cognitive operations required for both linguistic
and non-linguistic tasks."
Simply put, background noise degrades speech
to the point where hearing aids alone
may not be enough to help you hear better
in a noisy environment.
This means that if you want to hear better
in background noise,
you have to be able to handle
the additional cognitive load required
to understand speech when there's noise around.
Therefore, understanding how well
you should expect to hear in a background noise situation
really depends on how well you perform cognitively.
Yet, evaluating your cognitive brain function
is something that has been long overlooked
by hearing care professionals.
That's why Cognivue, today's video sponsor,
has developed a way to evaluate your cognitive performance,
using their Cognivue Thrive system.
Cognivue Thrive is a computerized
cognitive screening tool
that allows your hearing care professional
to evaluate how your brain performs,
to see if cognitive impairment is impacting
your ability to hear.
The five minute evaluation is designed to measure
three key domains of cognition,
including memory, which is your ability
to store and recall information when needed,
visual spatial, which is your ability
to process and interpret visual information
about yourself and your surroundings,
and executive function, which is your ability
to concentrate and problem solve.
It also measures two speed performance domains,
including reaction time, which is your ability
to react to situations,
and processing speed, which is the time that it takes
to mentally process a task.
If your performance in any of these domains
falls into the yellow or red categories,
then it is highly likely
that they are impairing your ability to process speech
in a background noise situation.
Until you understand how well you perform cognitively,
it's very difficult to know
if the amount of effort you put into listening
is due to your hearing loss,
or if it's due to your cognition.
The good news is the information obtained in this screening
can help your hearing care professional identify
if cognitive decline is contributing to your difficulty.
It can help them identify the need
for additional audiologic testing,
or it can even lead to a physician referral
for additional cognitive testing.
The results obtained from the Cognivue Thrive screening
can also lead to a better treatment recommendation
from your hearing care professional,
to help you hear your absolute best in background noise,
with as little listening effort as possible.
For example, if you happen to score
in the yellow or red categories in any of these domains,
your hearing care professional may actually recommend
an assistive listening device, like a remote microphone,
that can help cut through background noise,
so you can understand speech significantly better.
Over time, your hearing care professional
can even use the Cognivue Thrive system
to see if auditory stimulation using hearing treatment
is actually having a positive impact on your cognition.
After all, with all the research coming out
linking hearing loss and dementia,
monitoring your cognitive performance
should be high on your priority list
if you have a hearing loss.
Okay, at this point, you're probably thinking,
"Dr. Cliff, I get it.
I should be having my cognitive performance evaluated,
but where the heck do I find a hearing care professional
who actually has the Cognivue Thrive system?"
Well, all you have to do is go to earbrain.com,
and click on find an audiologist.
This way you can enter your zip code
to find your closest Cognivue provider.
If you do not have an audiologist near you
who has the Cognivue Thrive system,
or if you already have an audiologist
that does not have Cognivue,
then click on, "Can't find the right AUD,"
and Cognivue will reach out to providers in your area
on your behalf.
At the end of the day, everybody with hearing loss
wants to hear better in background noise.
But until you have a full understanding
of your hearing loss,
and your overall cognitive performance,
you may never actually receive
the right treatment to accomplish it.
That's it for this video, if you have any questions,
leave them in the comment section below.
If you liked the video, please share it.
And if you wanna see other videos, just like this one,
go ahead and hit that subscribe button.
Also feel free to check out my website, drcliffaud.com.
♪ Are you ready ♪