Bilateral bone conduction stimulation provides reliable binaural cues for localization

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize binaural hearing abilities with bone conduction stimulation in simulated conductive hearing loss. Bone conduction hearing devices (BCDs) are a common method of rehabilitating conductive hearing loss. However, little is known about the access these devices provide to binaural cues. To study the ability of BCDs to restore access to binaural cues in conductive loss, normal hearing listeners were plugged unilaterally and bilaterally and localization ability was assessed using a non-surgical BCD attached to the mastoid/s via an adhesive (MED-EL, Corp). The results demonstrate that 1) application of the BCD in simulated unilateral conductive hearing loss does not restore access to binaural cues, evidenced by poor localization abilities. 2) bilateral application of BCDs in simulated bilateral conductive hearing loss provides access to binaural cues, 2) unilateral application of BCDs in simulated bilateral conductive hearing loss disrupts these cues and impairs localization performance, The transcutaneous stimulation of the adhesive BCD resulted in decreased access to sound compared to the normal open ear, resulting in asymmetries in aided versus non-aided hearing thresholds. Symmetrical hearing results in improved localization abilities, while asymmetric hearing disrupts sound localization abilities.