SONNET 2 and RONDO 3 processors improve sentence recognition in noise for Mandarin-speaking cochlear implant users.
Photo by Brett Jordan / Unsplash
Key Takeaway
Consider that upgraded processors may improve speech recognition in noise for Mandarin-speaking cochlear implant users, but evidence is limited to this population.
A prospective single-subject repeated-measures cohort study enrolled 51 native Mandarin-speaking cochlear implant users. The intervention compared SONNET 2 and RONDO 3 dual-microphone audio processors in omnidirectional and adaptive intelligence modes against a legacy baseline processor.
The primary outcome was sentence recognition in noise for SONNET 2 omnidirectional versus the legacy processor, which showed a significant improvement (p < 0.05). For secondary outcomes, all four upgraded configurations yielded significantly higher scores for monosyllabic word recognition in quiet versus the legacy baseline (all p < 0.05).
Safety and tolerability were not reported; no adverse events, serious adverse events, or discontinuations were described. The study design, a prospective single-subject repeated-measures cohort, provides limited high-level evidence for tonal language populations. Only the primary endpoint had confirmatory analyses; secondary endpoints were exploratory.
Practice relevance is not reported, and causality is not established; only an association is reported. The findings are specific to Mandarin-speaking cochlear implant users and should not be generalized to non-tonal languages.
View Original Abstract ↓
BackgroundCochlear implant (CI) audio processor upgrades have demonstrated speech recognition benefits in non-tonal language populations, but high-level evidence for native Mandarin-speaking CI users (a tonal language with unique signal processing requirements) remains critically limited. This study aimed to assess the speech perception performance of the SONNET 2 and RONDO 3 dual-microphone audio processors in native Mandarin-speaking CI users.MethodsThis prospective single-subject repeated-measures study enrolled 51 native Mandarin-speaking CI users. Speech recognition performance was tested across five processor configurations: the legacy baseline processor, SONNET 2 (S2) in omnidirectional (S2.OMNI) and adaptive intelligence (S2.Adaptive) modes, and RONDO 3 (R3) in omnidirectional (R3.OMNI) and adaptive intelligence (R3.Adaptive) modes. Outcome measures included monosyllabic words, disyllabic words, and sentence recognition in quiet, and sentence recognition in co-located speech-shaped noise (S0N0 paradigm). The pre-specified primary endpoint was sentence recognition in noise for S2.OMNI vs. the legacy processor; confirmatory linear mixed-effects models (LMMs) and subgroup analyses were exclusively performed for the primary endpoint, with pairwise comparisons for all secondary exploratory endpoints.ResultsIn quiet, all four upgraded configurations yielded significantly higher monosyllabic word recognition scores vs. the legacy baseline (all p
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