The objective of the present study was to determine the status of extended high frequencies in subjects with secretory otitis media. The study evaluated 30 ears of 20 subjects with secretory otitis media in the age group of 15-30 years. This data was compared with 20 ears of 10 volunteers of the same age group with clinically normal hearing. Pure tone air conduction thresholds were analyzed in three frequency groups: low frequency (LF: 0.25, 0.5, and 1 kHz), high frequency (HF: 2, 4, and 8 kHz) and extended high frequency (EHF: 10, 12, and 16 kHz). The results showed elevated extended high frequency thresholds (EHFG) as compared to control group and comparatively better thresholds at high frequencies(HFG)s as compared to low (LFG)and extended high frequencies(EHFG) in the study group. This validates the importance of including an extended high frequency audiometry in the test battery of patients with secretory otitis media.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the benefits of combined use of captions and sign language interpretation in understanding television content. Methods: 30 prelingually deaf adults (25-45 y) participated in the study. Stimulus consisted of three video-clips taken from Television (TV) program "Shaktimaan" with already incorporated sign language video. Captions were incorporated in two of the video clips. The experiment was conducted in three phases. In pre-experimental phase participants were required to answer informational questions. In the Experimental phase participants were shown three video-clips in three different viewing conditions i.e. with sign language (WSL), with captions only (WC) and with both sign language and captions combined (WSL:WC). They were required to answer 10 comprehension questions after each video. In post experimental phase they were required to answer feedback questions based on the videos shown. Results: The results showed significant improvement in scores in condition with combined presence of captions and sign language (WSL:WC),than the other two conditions. Conclusion: Was concluded that providing captions and sign language together would immensely help in making television accessible to larger number of deaf adults than providing any of it alone. It was further concluded that the combined use of these devices may also be helpful in improving televised content depending on the individual's efficiency in use of Sign language or captions, though this needs to be researched further.

The present study aims to evaluate combined use of captioning and hearing aids and captions in hearing aid users. 60 subjects participated in the study. They were divided into two groups of Group A (Young adults) of 20-45 y and Group-B (Older adults) of 50-85 years. Two types of stimuli were created. Sentence stimuli (S1) and Context Stimulus (S2). S1 consisted of sentences with and without captions each with two score able words. S2 consisted of four video-clips for two minutes duration each, with and without captions. The participants were shown the stimulus in four viewing conditions 1) Baseline 2) With hearing aids 3) With captions and no hearing aids 4) with captions and hearing aids. They were required to answer 10 comprehension questions after each presentation. The results showed significant improvement in scores during combined use of captioning and hearing aids with scores of 75% and 92% in S1 and S2 in adults Group A and scores of 73% and 91% in group B IN s1 and S2 respectively. No significant difference was found between the scores in condition with hearing aid vs. without hearing aid and young adult vs. Older adults. additionally, it was found that the frequency distribution of participants on results of questionnaires was different across the two groups indicating that the young adults and older adults differ in their television viewing habits' and also that the subjective perception the hearing aid benefit is different in two populations. Thus, concluding that captioning helps in improving the understanding of televised content in Hearing aid users.

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Background: Hearing impairment has a huge adverse impact on the normal developmental outcome of an individual. The various newborn period risk factors may escalate hearing loss. Early detection of hearing impairment has been made possible with the use of universal tools like OAE (Otoacoustic emission) and ABR (Auditory brainstem response) and has resulted in the general awareness and timely intervention. This study highlights the use of OAE and ABR for early detection of hearing loss in children 0-3 months along with the associated risk factors taken into consideration. Subjects and Methods: The present study was conducted in Maharishi Markandeshwar medical college and hospital over a period of 12 months and included 1680 newborns who were subjected to two staged OAE examination( pre discharge and at 6 weeks) followed by ABR examination done over a period of 3 months. The various risk factors were also evaluated. Results: A total of 1680 newborns underwent pre discharge first OAE examination, 146(8.7%) failed. A total of 141 underwent the repeat OAE examination at 6 weeks and 23(16.3%) failed. ABR examination of 20 children resulted in failure in 3(15%) culminating in overall prevalence of hearing impairment of 1.79 per 1000 population. The prevalence of various risk factors taken into consideration was 23%. Conclusion: The two staged sequential OAE assessment followed by ABR examination has an important role for the early detection of hearing impairment and consequent improvement in the quality of life. This should be adopted by all the newborn care providers as a part of their routine examination of the newborns.