Supplementing Hearing Aids With Computerized Auditory Training (LACE)

June 20, 2018 updated by: VA Office of Research and Development
The study is designed to examine the effectiveness of a computer-based auditory training program to improve the benefits received by individuals who wear hearing aids. The study will involve 3 groups - a computer-based training group, an active listening group which will involve listening to books on CD, and a placebo group that receives no additional treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This proposed study is a multi-site, single-masked (blinded), randomized controlled, parallel group clinical trial to assess the effectiveness of an at home PC-based auditory training as a supplement to standard-of-care hearing-aid intervention in veterans treated for hearing loss, with or without previous hearing-aid experience. The participants will be assigned randomly to one of three groups, with hearing-aid use stratified within the groups: (1) Group 1, HA+AT, in which the participants will receive standard-of-care hearing-aid intervention (HA) and complete the four-week LACE auditory training program (AT); (2) Group 2, HA, with the participants receiving only standard-of-care hearing-aid intervention (HA); and (3) Group 3, HA+DL, in which the participants will receive standard-of-care hearing-aid intervention (HA) and complete four-weeks of placebo auditory training, consisting of directed listening (DL) to books-on-tape. The participants in each group will attend four test sessions. During Session 1 the informed consent process will be completed, baseline assessments will be made to ensure that the participants meet the study inclusion criteria (page 52), testing of predictor variables (page 57-58) will be completed, and all hearing aids will be assessed for correct functionality (page 53). The participants then will be assigned randomly to a study group. Session 2 will occur four weeks after Session 1. During Session 2, baseline performance on the outcome measures will be assessed (page 54-57), as will performance on the predictor variables. Following testing, the participants in Groups 1 and 3 will receive training in the use of the AT or DL programs. Session 3 will occur at the end of the 4-week experimental training period. During Session 3 all participants will be retested on the outcome measures to assess short-term intervention outcomes. During Session 4, which will occur at seven-months post-study enrollment (i.e., six-months post training completion for Groups 1 and 3), all participants will be retested on all outcome measures to examine the long-term outcomes. In Sessions 2-4, the stability of hearing-aid function will be assessed through electroacoustic measures.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

279

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Bay Pines, Florida, United States, 33708
        • VA Medical Center, Bay Pines

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

55 years to 85 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. adult onset hearing loss,
  2. English as the first language,
  3. bilateral, symmetric, sensorineural hearing loss,
  4. average audiometric thresholds for 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz less than 50-dB HL in either ear,
  5. aided speech recognition in quiet of 40% binaurally,
  6. appropriate cognitive skills assessed using the Mini Mental State Exam (Folstein et al., 1975) with age/education norms (Crum et al., 1993),
  7. adequate vision to participate in the study as determined with the Smith-Kettlewell Institute Low Luminance (SKILL) Card,
  8. eligible for VA-issued hearing aids.

Exclusion Criteria:

known neurological, psychiatric disorders, or co-morbid diseases that would prevent completion of the study as determined by chart review,

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: LACE-DVD
Participants will complete the LACE training, however, not in an interactive computer mode but through a static DVD mode
Behavioral: Lace-DVD
DVD based Auditory Training
Experimental: LACE-COMPUTER
Participants will complete a computer-based auditory training program (i.e., LACE)
Behavioral: LACE-computer
Computerized Auditory Training
Active Comparator: PLACEBO-DIRECTED LISTENING
Participants will complete a directed listening to books on CD treatment
Behavioral: PLACEBO-Directed listening
Subjects will be asked to listen to books on tape for 20 minutes a day and answer questions as they go along
Active Comparator: CONTROL
Participants will be provided with hearing aids
Behavioral: CONTROL
No specialized treatment will be provided in addition to standard of care audiology treatment provided with the provision of hearing aids

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Words-in-Noise Test (WIN) Change
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up
Monosyllabic words (NU-6 female version) with a carrier phrase were presented auditory only in a multitalker babble.The participant is asked to repeat the last word of each phrase. The total number of correct words is input into the Spearman-Karber equation to derive a 50% point. This is the signal-to-noise ratio in dB that an individual requires to get 50% of the words correct. This test was completed at baseline and follow up visits.
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB) Change
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up
The Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Performance (APHAP; Cox & Alexander 1995) was used to assess activity limitations and the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly or Adults (HHI; Ventry & Weinstein 1982; Newman et al. 1990) was used to assess participation restrictions. The APHAP is a 24-item questionnaire that documents hearing difficulties in specified listening situations. The items are answered on a 7-point scale from 'Always' (or 99%) to 'Never' (or 1%) with higher scores indicating greater reported hearing difficulty. The APHAP global score that ranges from 1 to 99 was used for all analyses.
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up
Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly (HHI) Change
Time Frame: Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up
The HHI is a 25-item questionnaire that assesses the social and emotional consequences of hearing loss. The HHI for the elderly is for individuals age 65 years and older (Ventry & Weinstein 1982); the HHI for adults is for individuals aged 64 years and younger (Newman et al. 1990). The versions differ in the wording of three questions. The participants were asked to complete the appropriate HHI for aided listening to reflect their residual hearing handicap. HHI items are answered on a scale of Yes (4 points), Sometimes (2 points) and No (0 points), with higher scores indicating greater reported hearing handicap. Total HHI scores, which can range from 0 to 100, were used for all analyses.
Baseline, immediate post-intervention (up to 2 to 6 weeks), 6 month follow up

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

VA Office of Research and Development

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Theresa Chisolm, PhD, University of South Florida

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

January 1, 2009

Primary Completion (Actual)

April 1, 2011

Study Completion (Actual)

December 1, 2011

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 30, 2008

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 30, 2008

First Posted (Estimate)

August 4, 2008

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 18, 2018

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 20, 2018

Last Verified

June 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • C6303-R

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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