HearingNCT07822802
Understanding Speech in Background Noise
A study testing Speech filtering and Speech with background noise in people with Hearing and Healthy, run by Ohio State University at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to establish how speech understanding is affected by background noise in people with normal hearing. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does noise affect speech understanding similarly in all frequency regions? Does adding noise cause speech understanding to fall away at a… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 70 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Hearing, Healthy, Speech Perception
- What is being tested?
- Speech filtering and Speech with background noise
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 200 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 30 Sep 2026to 31 Aug 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 70 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Age between 18 and 70 years
- Native English speakers
- No known history of cognitive impairment
- No known history of hearing impairment
Who cannot join
- Age under 18 or over 70 years
- Non-native English speaker
- Known history of cognitive impairment
- Known history of hearing impairment
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
Official title: The Susceptibility of Speech to Noise
The goal of this clinical trial is to establish how speech understanding is affected by background noise in people with normal hearing. The main questions it aims to answer are:
- Does noise affect speech understanding similarly in all frequency regions?
- Does adding noise cause speech understanding to fall away at a similar rate across frequencies?
Participants will listen to speech in different frequency regions, with noise added at various levels, and respond with the words that they hear.
Read the detailed description
Participants will be seated comfortably throughout the experiment. Stimuli involving speech mixed with background noise at various levels will be played back from a PC and presented diotically over headphones at a level of approximately 65 dBA in each ear. Subjects will be instructed to repeat back each sentence, guessing if unsure. The experimenter will record component words correctly recalled. Sentences will not be repeated, and only exact-word matches will be accepted. A 10-minute practice stage will precede testing, in which subjects will hear example stimuli and sentences not used for testing. Test duration will not exceed two hours. Multiple groups of listeners will be employed, and the basic experimental protocol for each participant will be identical, differing only with regard to differences in the frequency content of the speech and/or the background noise present. Participants will be randomly assigned to groups.
- Conditions
- Hearing, Healthy, Speech Perception
- Being tested
- Speech filtering, Speech with background noise
- Keywords
- Speech Perception, Speech Discrimination Tests, Hearing
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Speech filteringBehavioural
Speech will be filtered into one of three frequency regions.
Speech with background noiseBehavioural
Background noise will be added to the speech at different levels.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Low-frequency region | Experimental | Speech and noise filtered to the low frequencies Receives: Behavioral: Speech filtering; Behavioral: Speech with background noise |
| Mid-frequency region | Experimental | Speech and noise filtered to the mid frequencies Receives: Behavioral: Speech filtering; Behavioral: Speech with background noise |
| High-frequency region | Experimental | Speech and noise filtered to the high frequencies Receives: Behavioral: Speech filtering; Behavioral: Speech with background noise |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Percent words correct
The percentage of words correctly heard and reported by the listener
Measured: During a single listening session lasting not more than 2 hours
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted16 Sep 2026
- Study start30 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for HearingStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Ohio State UniversityThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Participant
- Enrolment
- 200 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Ohio State University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07822802
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- R21DC022428
- Other IDs
- R21DC022428
- Status last verified
- Sep 2026
- First submitted
- 10 Sep 2026
- Last updated
- 16 Sep 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Undecided
Publications
Yoho SE, Apoux F, Healy EW. The noise susceptibility of various speech bands. J Acoust Soc Am. 2018 Apr;143(4):2527. doi: 10.1121/1.5034172.
PubMed 29716288
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 16 Sep 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- The Susceptibility of Speech to Noise
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07822802
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- R21DC022428
- Conditions
- Hearing, Healthy, Speech Perception
- Keywords
- Speech Perception, Speech Discrimination Tests, Hearing
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Enrolling by invitation
- Enrolment
- 200 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Ohio State UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
- Study start
- 30 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- 31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 16 Sep 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The goal of this clinical trial is to establish how speech understanding is affected by background noise in people with normal hearing. The main questions it aims to answer are:
- Does noise affect speech understanding similarly in all frequency regions?
- Does adding noise cause speech understanding to fall away at a similar rate across frequencies?
Participants will listen to speech in different frequency regions, with noise added at various levels, and respond with the words that they hear.
Detailed description
Participants will be seated comfortably throughout the experiment. Stimuli involving speech mixed with background noise at various levels will be played back from a PC and presented diotically over headphones at a level of approximately 65 dBA in each ear. Subjects will be instructed to repeat back each sentence, guessing if unsure. The experimenter will record component words correctly recalled. Sentences will not be repeated, and only exact-word matches will be accepted. A 10-minute practice stage will precede testing, in which subjects will hear example stimuli and sentences not used for testing. Test duration will not exceed two hours. Multiple groups of listeners will be employed, and the basic experimental protocol for each participant will be identical, differing only with regard to differences in the frequency content of the speech and/or the background noise present. Participants will be randomly assigned to groups.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (participant)
- Number of arms
- 3
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Low-frequency region | Experimental | Behavioral: Speech filtering, Behavioral: Speech with background noiseSpeech and noise filtered to the low frequencies |
| Mid-frequency region | Experimental | Behavioral: Speech filtering, Behavioral: Speech with background noiseSpeech and noise filtered to the mid frequencies |
| High-frequency region | Experimental | Behavioral: Speech filtering, Behavioral: Speech with background noiseSpeech and noise filtered to the high frequencies |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 70 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Age between 18 and 70 years
- Native English speakers
- No known history of cognitive impairment
- No known history of hearing impairment
Key exclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Age under 18 or over 70 years
- Non-native English speaker
- Known history of cognitive impairment
- Known history of hearing impairment
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Speech filteringSpeech will be filtered into one of three frequency regions. | Behavioural | High-frequency region, Low-frequency region, Mid-frequency region |
| Speech with background noiseBackground noise will be added to the speech at different levels. | Behavioural | High-frequency region, Low-frequency region, Mid-frequency region |
Primary outcome
Percent words correct
Time frame: During a single listening session lasting not more than 2 hours
The percentage of words correctly heard and reported by the listener
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 16 Sep 2026.
- Background: PubMed 29716288Yoho SE, Apoux F, Healy EW. The noise susceptibility of various speech bands. J Acoust Soc Am. 2018 Apr;143(4):2527. doi: 10.1121/1.5034172.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Undecided
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Speech filtering and Speech with background noise in people with Hearing and Healthy, run by Ohio State University at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: enrolling by invitation, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 Sep 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Percent words correct (time frame: During a single listening session lasting not more than 2 hours). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT07822802, which also lists 1 linked publication.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 Sep 2026.