Computer-generated models are increasingly being used in otolaryngology for teaching purposes, pre-operative planning and clinical simulations, especially when dealing with smaU complex areas such as the middle ear. One technique used to analyse the mechanics of complex models is the fmite-element method whereby the system of interest is divided into a large number of small simple clements. The...

PURPOSE To establish normative data for children and to characterize developmental differences in performance with the free recall version of the Randomized Dichotic Digits Test. RESEARCH DESIGN Group comparison of behavioral data derived from administration of the Randomized Dichotic Digits Test. STUDY SAMPLE Children from 10 to 18 years of age (167) and young adults from 19 to 28 years of...

Normal right-handed subjects were required to make pitch comparisons of complex tones in which the fundamental frequency was either present or absent. In both conditions, tones were presented monaurally. An increase in left-ear superiority was observed in the response time measurements when the fundamental was absent. These findings support the notion that the right hemisphere possesses a speci...

The auditory channel is one of the most affected by the activity of musicians. The aim of this study was to verify the efficiency of the Monitor of Hearing In Ear regarding prevention of the hearing loss in the activity realized by musicians. This study justifies by the need to verify a possible method of protection for these professionals. It was analyzed a group of 10 musicians of a band of d...

OBJECTIVE Bimodal stimulation is a possible treatment for asymmetrical hearing loss, wherein 1 ear is stimulated with a cochlear implant and the other is stimulated with a hearing aid. This emerging indication has gained significance over the last few years. However, little research has been conducted regarding the performance in different types of asymmetric Hearing loss. This study seeks to p...

In dichotic listening, two competing messages are delivered to the left and right ear, respectively. Right-handed subjects tend to report hearing more frequently the message input to the right ear. This is called Right Ear Advantage (REA). When intensities and other properties of the messages are properly adjusted, subjects may have a single perception localized to the center of the head. Frequ...

Previous studies suggest that at poorer signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), auditory cortical event-related potentials are weakened, prolonged, and show a shift in the functional lateralization of cerebral processing from left to right hemisphere. Increased right hemisphere involvement during speech-in-noise (SIN) processing may reflect the recruitment of additional brain resources to aid speech rec...

The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 explicitly increased Medicare payments to private Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. As a result, MA plans have, for the past six years, been paid more for their enrollees than they would be expected to cost in traditional fee-for-service Medicare. Payments to MA plans in 2009 are projected to be 13 percent greater than the corresponding costs in traditional M...

This study aimed to evaluate neuroendocrine responses and changes in perceptual asymmetry following an induced negative affect. Cortisol increasing in response to negative affect has been reported, while current brain models of emotion processing link negative affect to the right hemisphere. In this study, the Velten Mood Induction Procedure was used to generate neutral or negative affect in 44...

The typical finding in dichotic listening with verbal stimuli is the right ear advantage (REA), indicating a left hemisphere processing superiority, thus making this an effective tool in studying hemispheric asymmetry. It has been shown that the amplitude of the REA can be modulated by instructions to direct attention to left or right side. The current study attempted to modulate the REA by cha...