Could the hormonal changes associated with menopause affect a woman’s ability to process auditory information?
Trott et al (2019) compared performance on tests of central auditory function between 14 pre-menopausal women (mean age = 30 years) and 14 peri- or post-menopausal women (mean age = 54 years). All subject had pure-tone hearing thresholds of 25 dB HL or better at 500, 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz in both of the ears.
Subjects completed the following behavioral central auditory processing (CAP) tests: the Dichotic Digits Test (Musiek, 1983), the Duration Patterns Test (Musiek et al, 1990), the Listening in Spatialized Noise Test – Sentences (LiSN-S) test (Cameron and Dillon, 2007), and the Speech Perception in Noise—Revised Test (Bilger et al, 1984). Trott and colleagues also collected auditory brainstem response (ABR) and middle-latency-response (MLR) measures on these subjects.
Statistical analyses revealed significant differences between the subject groups on the LiSN-S test (low-cue SRT, high-cue SRT and overall), the ABR (wave III latency in the left ear and rate effects for wave V latency bilaterally), and the MLR (Pa amplitude on the right side). The peri-/post-menopausal group performed more poorly on the LiSN-S and had longer ABR wave V latencies with an increased rate of stimulation 23.3 clicks/sec versus 77.7 clicks/sec). The authors believed that the other statistically significant different electrophysiological measures between subject groups, which were unilateral, were due to the small number of subjects.
According to the authors, these data suggest that post-menopausal women with auditory complaints whose peripheral hearing is within normal limits should be evaluated for potential central auditory processing deficits.
References
Bilger R, Nuetzel J, Rabinotwit W, Rzeczkowski C. (1984) Standardization of a test of speech perception in noise. J Speech Hear Res 27:32–48.
Cameron S, Dillon H. (2007) Development of the listening in spatialized noise-sentence test (LISN-S). Ear Hear 28:196–211.
Musiek F. (1983) Assessment of central auditory dysfunction: the dichotic digits test revisited. Ear Hear 4:79–83.
Musiek F, Baran J, Pinheiro M. (1990) Duration pattern recognition in normal subjects and participants with cerebral and cochlear lesions. Audiology 29:3014–313.
Trott S, Cline T, Weihing J, Beshear D, Bush M, Shinn J. (2019) Hormones and hearing: central auditory processing in women. J Am Acad Audiol 30(6):493–201.
Related Posts
What Exactly Are Binaural Beats?
When you present one tone to one ear and a second to the other ear, your brain perceives an additional tone. This is the essence of binaural beats. The concept of two tones creating a third tone should ring familiar with audiologists. However, our clinical use typically is unilateral when assessing distortion product otoacoustic emissions….
Does Your Dog Listen to You?
Dogs have a reputation for being human’s best friend. If you have ever had one as a pet, you know that they can be a loyal companion. Maybe even a trusted confidante? You may have tried training your dog to follow basic commands like “sit” and “stay.” Have you ever noticed though that some…
Who’s Afraid of Snakes?
Research shows that approximately half of the population feel “anxious” about snakes, and a whopping three percent of the population meet the diagnostic criteria for snake phobia (Polak et al., 2016). Is it their skin? Is it that they have no legs and thus slither? Is it the tongue? Is it their ears? Wait—do snakes…