Linguistic Masking Release in School-Age Children and Adults

Purpose

This study assessed if 6- to 8-year-old children benefit from a language mismatch between target and masker speech for sentence recognition in a 2-talker masker.

Method

English sentence recognition was evaluated for English monolingual children (ages 6–8 years, n = 15) and adults (n = 15) in an English 2-talker and a Spanish 2-talker masker. A regression analysis with subject as a random variable was used to test the fixed effect of listener group and masker language and the interaction of these two effects.

Results

Thresholds were approximately 5 dB higher for children than for adults in both maskers. However, children and adults benefited to the same degree from a mismatch between the target and masker language with approximately 3 dB lower thresholds in the Spanish than the English masker.

Conclusions

Results suggest that children are able to take advantage of linguistic differences between English and Spanish speech maskers to the same degree as adults. Yet, overall worse performance for children may indicate general cognitive immaturity compared with adults, perhaps causing children to be less efficient when combining glimpses of degraded speech information into a meaningful sentence.

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Cervicogenic somatosensory tinnitus: An indication for manual therapy plus education? Part 2: A pilot study.

Cervicogenic somatosensory tinnitus: An indication for manual therapy plus education? Part 2: A pilot study.

Man Ther. 2016 Feb 21;

Authors: Oostendorp RA, Bakker I, Elvers H, Mikolajewska E, Michiels S, De Hertogh W, Samwel H

Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of Manual Therapy Utrecht (MTU) plus education in patients with cervicogenic somatosensory tinnitus (CeT).
STUDY DESIGN: Pretest-posttest design.
METHOD: Five hundred and six patients were referred or referred themselves. A subgroup of patients was identified with CeT, and within this a subgroup with tinnitus sensitization (TS). Two CeT groups were created based on the presence or absence of TS. Both groups underwent manual therapy combined with tinnitus education. Tinnitus intensity (VAS-tin 0-100 mm) was the primary outcome measure. Number of treatments and adverse effects were the secondary outcome measures.
RESULTS: A total of 122 patients with CeT (24.1%) were included (average age 53.3 years [±9.8], female 38.5% and duration of tinnitus 7.3 years [±8.9]). Patients were divided into two groups: 55 patients (45.1%) with TS (CeT + TS group) and 67 patients (54.9%) without TS (CeT - TS group). Pretest to posttest differences on the VAS-tin were statistically significant within both groups (CeT - TS group: difference VAS-tin 5.9 [p = 0.01]; CeT + TS group: difference VAS-tin 18.2 [p = 0.00]), and between the groups in favor of the CeT + TS group (difference VAS-tin 12.3 [p = 0.01]). Pretest to posttest differences were clinically significant for the CeT + TS group (difference VAS-tin 18.2 [MCIC = ≥10 mm VAS-tin]) and between the groups (difference VAS-tin 12.3 in favor of the CeT + TS group). The average number of treatment sessions was 9.6 (±2.6) for the CeT - TS group and 10.3 (±2.5) for the CeT + TS group, a non-significant difference. There were no adverse effects in either group.
CONCLUSIONS: Despite its limitations, this study provides valuable information on both the characteristics of patients with CeT and TS in a Dutch primary care manual therapy practice and on the potential effectiveness of MTU combined with tinnitus education for the subgroup of CeT + TS patients.

PMID: 26971019 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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Reasons and results of endoscopic surgery for prolactinomas: 142 surgical cases.

Reasons and results of endoscopic surgery for prolactinomas: 142 surgical cases.

Acta Neurochir (Wien). 2016 Mar 12;

Authors: Akin S, Isikay I, Soylemezoglu F, Yucel T, Gurlek A, Berker M

Abstract
BACKGROUND: We report herein a retrospective analysis of the results of 142 consecutive prolactinoma cases operated upon using an endoscopic endonasal trans-sphenoidal approach over a period of 6 years.
METHODS: Medical records of 142 cases were analysed with respect to indications for surgery, duration of hospital stay, early remission rates, failures and recurrence rates during a median follow-up of 36 months.
RESULTS: On the basis of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data, 19 patients (13.4 %) had microadenoma, 113 (79.6 %) had macroadenoma, and the remaining 10 (7.0 %) had giant adenomas. Cavernous sinus invasion was identified in 25 patients by MRI and confirmed during surgery. Atypical adenoma was diagnosed in 16 patients. Sparsely granulated prolactin adenoma was identified in 99 patients (69.7 %). Our results demonstrate that male sex and higher preoperative prolactin levels are independent factors predicting persistent disease. The post-surgical complications are as follows: 2.8 % patients had meningitis, 2.1 % patients had postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leak and 2.1 % patients had panhypopituitarism. At the end of follow-up, 74.6 % patients went into remission. During follow-up period, five patients who had initial remission developed recurrence.
CONCLUSIONS: Our series together with literature data suggest that an endoscopic endonasal trans-sphenoidal approach in the treatment of proloctinomas has a favourable rate of remission. According to the findings of this study, endoscopic endonasal trans-sphenoidal surgery might be an appropriate therapy choice for patients with prolactinoma who could not have been managed with recommended therapeutic modalities.

PMID: 26970763 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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Aeroallergens in West Crete, Greece: A five year (2010-2014) aerobiological study.

Aeroallergens in West Crete, Greece: A five year (2010-2014) aerobiological study.

Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2016 Mar 12;

Authors: Papadakis CE, Kiagiadaki DE, Bonatos SI, Katotomichelakis M, Danielides V, Proimos EK

Abstract
The objective of the analytic observational study was to present air-pollen counting program results for a 5-year period. Airborne pollens and fungi collection, from both urban and sub-urban areas, were obtained using a special Burkard pollen trap installed on the roof of Chania General Hospital. Aeroallergen concentration measurement was made in a standardized way with fixation of the material collected and then counting using an optical microscope. Annual and total circulating pollen and fungi counts for the study period are presented. In the year 2014, the highest total annual count was recorded, while 2013 was the year with the lowest one. Months with the highest average concentrations were June for the years 2010 and 2011 (1291 and 1114.6 grains/m(3), respectively) and May for the consecutive 3 years 2012-2014 (1120, 890 and 1353.1 g/m(3), respectively). Peak periods for circulating aeroallergens were April-June. Trees pollen accounted for the majority of circulating aeroallergens (615.9 and 677.1 g/m(3) during peak periods in the years 2012 and 2014), while fungi accounted for the majority of circulating aeroallergens (818.5, 729.4, 890.7 spores/m(3)), during the peak periods in the years 2010, 2011 and 2013. Variability in peak airborne allergen periods could be partly explained by the differences in climatic conditions during the study period.

PMID: 26971336 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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