Our Research
The Translational Auditory Physiology and Perception Laboratory studies how sounds travel from the outer, through the middle, and to the inner ear in people with normal hearing and in people with various hearing disorders. Our goal is to use this information to improve the assessment of hearing loss, particularly our ability to differentiate the cause of hearing loss.
Understanding Conductive Hearing Loss
Our lab has a particular emphasis on conductive hearing loss. Specifically, we are interested in:
- • Understanding how different causes of conductive hearing loss impact the auditory system.
- • Developing objective and non-invasive methods to diagnose and differentiate these causes, and
- • Determining how transient and fluctuating conductive hearing loss, particularly in the case of otitis media, impacts long-term auditory processing and speech and language development.
Utilizing Clinical Tools and Research Innovation
Our work uses a combination of standard clinical measures and experimental measures (including otoscopy, pure-tone audiometry, tympanometry, wideband acoustic immittance / wideband tympanometry, otoacoustic emissions, and electrophysiological responses including the auditory brainstem response) and compares these assessments to characteristics of various pathologies.
Research on the Road
Our mobile research vehicle is upfitted for monitoring the ear and hearing status of our participants. Our van is equipped with technology that allows our team of audiologists and research assistants to conduct comprehensive ear and hearing assessments with individuals of all ages (including otoscopy, pure-tone audiometry, tympanometry, wideband acoustic immittance, otoacoustic emissions). By bringing research directly to participants, our goal is to ease the burden of frequent visits on busy families allowing our team to gain valuable insights into middle ear conditions and their effect on hearing, helping to understand hearing health across diverse populations.
Our Research Lab
Our research space is approximately 600 square feet and includes a spacious sound suite equipped with everything necessary to perform both pediatric and adult behavioral hearing assessments. This includes a Otometrics Masden Astera 2-Channel Clinical Audiometer, mounted speakers for sound field testing, a video visual-reinforcement audiometry system, a video otoscope, and age-appropriate toys for testing infants and preschoolers.
The laboratory is also equipped with an Interacoustics Titan Impedance Probe for assessment of wideband acoustic immittance, tympanometry, and otoacoustic emissions as well as a Vivosonic Integrity V500 G2 auditory diagnostic system for assessment of auditory evoked potentials. Outside of the booth, is a large table and chairs where subjects and their families can be consented, storage space for laboratory equipment and files, and multiple workstations for personnel. Additional equipment housed in the laboratory include the tools needed to quantify middle-ear fluid characteristics including a RheoSense microVISC viscometer and agar plates necessary for bacterial assays.
