Susan E. Voss, Ph.D. - US grants

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this proposal is to support an interdisciplinary research program in auditory science at Smith College, the nation's largest women's liberal arts college. There are three major objectives: (1) To provide fundamental structure/function relationships of the middle ear needed for the development of ear-canal energy reflectance measurements as a diagnostic test of middle-ear function; (2) to involve undergraduates in meaningful research experiences; and (3) to strengthen the research environment at Smith College. The work proposed here will provide fundamental scientific and technical descriptions that are essential in the development of noninvasive auditory-based medical tests for middle-ear function. Objective medical tests do not exist to diagnose most middle-ear disorders, despite their prevalence. A proposed test with high potential is the noninvasive ear-canal based measurement of the energy reflectance of the ear. The work proposed here uses a combination of measurements of the energy reflectance made on cadaver ears and mathematical modeling of the middle ear to determine how variations in specific structural features affect the energy reflectance. This work provides the fundamental scientific background regarding middleear acoustic power flow in abnormal ears needed to develop energy reflectance as a clinical diagnostic tool. The research proposed here has been designed to make significant contributions to auditory science through research conducted in collaboration with undergraduate students. The work will support a research lab centered on a cadre of young women undergraduate students, who by working to develop a middle-ear diagnostic test, will learn to think systematically and formulate and solve open-ended research questions. This work will both strengthen the research environment at Smith College and provide substantial research experiences for undergraduate students. [unreadable] [unreadable]

CBET-0642600 Voss The project will study to develop better diagnostic approaches for evaluating auditory function in the long-term. The major goal of the research is to extend the diagnostic utility of two measurements of ear function. The specific aims are: (1) to measure and quantify middle-ear transmission in the newborns through ear-canal wide-band reflectance measurements (WBR); and (2) to measure and quantify middle-ear transmission changes that are caused by increases in intracranial pressure (ICP) by using ear-canal measurements of wide-band reflectance as well as otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs). The research work will benefit the general public by providing new auditory diagnostic methodologies for infants and adults. Especially non-invasive measurements of ICP can have profound clinical and commercial implications. The research work will occur at an undergraduate women's college (Smith College), and has significant involvement of undergraduates. The educational activities include curriculum development in Smith College, K12 outreach, and undergraduates working in the hospital research setting (Mass General Hospital).

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This work aims to develop wideband acoustic immittance (WAI) measures as a noninvasive auditory diagnostic tool, where WAI refers to the collection of both power-based and impedance-based measurements that include absorbance, power reflectance, impedance, and related quantities. Potential use of these measures includes (1) detection of fluid in newborn and young infant ears where tympanometry is less successful, (2) identification of the cause of a conductive hearing loss (e.g., fluid, disarticulated ossicle, fixed ossicle), and (3) monitoring changes in middle-ear stiffness that result from intracranial pressure changes. The work proposed here continues and formalizes the development of a normative database for WAI measures, which to date has been largely ad hoc. In particular, a database is proposed that will initially be populated with data collected from the proposed work and ultimately include procedures to allow for contributions of data from other researchers. The proposed work includes measurements on human subjects that are designed to determine how normative WAI measures depend on the parameters: instrumentation, age, gender, and race. The results will determine whether or not normative data would need to be parameterized for any of these quantities. A second emphasis of the proposed work is the research-based education of undergraduate students at Smith College, an all-women's liberal arts college. Undergraduate engineering students will be actively involved in all areas of the proposed work, with the goal of encouraging them to consider continuing their education toward a Ph.D.

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT This work aims to develop wideband acoustic immittance (WAI) measures as a noninvasive auditory diagnostic tool, where WAI refers to the collection of measurements that include absorbance, power re?ectance, impedance, and related quantities. Potential use of these measures includes (1) detection of ?uid in newborn and young infant ears where tympanometry is less successful, (2) identi?cation of the cause of a conductive hearing loss (e.g., ?uid, disarticulated ossicle, ?xed ossicle), and (3) monitoring changes in middle-ear stiffness that result from intracranial pressure changes. The proposed work ex- tends the world's only online WAI database and corresponding website, which was developed during the ?rst cycle of this grant, from WAI measurements on normative adult ears to also include ears with speci?c pathologies and ears of babies and children. The proposed work also includes (1) laboratory- based acoustical measurements and CT ear-canal scans to understand why the two FDA-approved WAI measurement systems have systematic differences in their measurements and (2) utilizing the database to perform data analyses across studies to compare WAI measures on both normal ears and ears with speci?c pathologies in order to identify WAI features that best differentiate between normal ears and ears with speci?c pathologies. A second emphasis of the proposed work is the research-based education of undergraduate students at Smith College, an all-women's liberal arts college. Undergraduate engi- neering students will be actively involved in all areas of the proposed work, with the goal of encouraging them to continuing their education at the graduate level.