09-11, 07:00–08:00 (Europe/Istanbul), Audiology 2
Background & Aim
Spatial listening is the ability to distinguish a target speech stream from simultaneous distracting noise using auditory spatial awareness. It relies on several factors, including the listener’s hearing thresholds, auditory experience, familiarity with the surrounding environment, motivation, and attention.
Listening in noisy environments is especially challenging for younger children in school settings, where early educational skills are often taught amidst background noise. Spatial processing disorder (SPD) is a significant issue observed in a notable proportion of children diagnosed with auditory processing disorder (APD). This round table will explore spatial listening research work in children
Material & Methods
Psychophysical and electrophysiological measures of spatial listening were condcted on normal children to establish norms for these measures
Results
It showed normal scores of the test that improved with age in both LiSN test and electrophysiological measures
Conclusions
LiSN test is a promising tool for assessing spatial listening as well as electrophysiological measures
Keywords
LiSN test-cortical measures- spatial listening- Auditory processing disorders
Spatial listening is the ability to distinguish a target speech stream from simultaneous distracting noise using auditory spatial awareness. It relies on several factors, including the listener’s hearing thresholds, auditory experience, familiarity with the surrounding environment, motivation, and attention.
Listening in noisy environments is especially challenging for younger children in school settings, where early educational skills are often taught amidst background noise. Spatial processing disorder (SPD) is a significant issue observed in a notable proportion of children diagnosed with auditory processing disorder (APD).
This round table will explore the concept of spatial listening, the tools available for assessment and clinical applications.
Biosketch: Dr. Somia Tawfik
Dr. Somia Tawfik Mohamed Ali is a distinguished professor of Audio-Vestibular Medicine at the College of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Egypt. Her primary focus is on auditory processing disorders (APD), and she has made significant contributions to the field through her research and clinical work.
Dr. Tawfik is an active member of several professional organizations, including the Egyptian Audio-Vestibular Medicine Association (EAVMA). Her involvement extends to international committees as well; the International Association of Physicians in Audiology (IAPA). She was a board member of the Audiology Committee of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics (IALP) from 2007 to 2024.
- From 2016 to 2022, Dr. Tawfik served as a board member of the Supreme Council of Universities in Egypt, overseeing the promotion of professors in Otology, Audio-Vestibular Medicine, and Phoniatrics. Her work has been widely recognized in both national and international peer-reviewed journals. She was awarded as one of the best reviewers by Elsevier in 2014 & 2015
In collaboration with her team at the Audiology Unit, Ain Shams University, Dr. Tawfik developed Arabic central auditory tests for diagnosing APD in both adults and children. Notably, she played a key role in creating the Brain Apt Program, the first Arabic computer-based program for remediation of central auditory processing disorders, which was initially released in 2009 and updated as on line program in 2015.
Dr. Tawfik's contributions to the field are marked by her innovative research and dedication to advancing auditory and vestibular medicine.
Dr. Wafaa Abdel-Hay Mohamed El-Kholy is Professor Emeritus of Audio-vestibular Medicine, Oto-rhino-laryngology Dept., Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. She shared in the development of Arabic speech perception tests for adults and children and the Arabic computer-based program for remediation of children with auditory processing disorders. She is co-founder of rehabilitation center for pre-school hearing aid and cochlear implant users. She is board member of the International Association of Communication Sciences and Disorders (IALP) – Audiology Committee. She also holds membership in the International Association of Physicians in Audiology (IAPA) and the Egyptian Audio-Vestibular Medicine Association (EAVMA). She is reviewer in the Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose and Throat and Allied Sciences (EJENTAS) and the Egyptian Journal of Oto-rhino-laryngology (EJO). Her research focuses on speech-evoked potentials in children using cochlear implants, those with central auditory processing disorders and/or language disorders. Her most recent research focuses on implementation of discrimination cortical evoked potentials, specifically the Acoustic Change Complex, in cochlear implant users and in children with auditory processing disorders. Moreover, she recently shared in the development of Arabic low-verbal material for central auditory abilities and low-verbal sentences-in-noise tests for young hearing-impaired children. Her current research focuses on the implementation of Artificial Intelligence in predicting performance in young cochlear implant children and evaluation of spatial listening in normal children, patients with SSD, and children with microtia.
Prof. Dalia was graduated with Bachelor of medicine & surgery distinction with first degree honor from Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University. Internship and Residency period was in the Audiology unit, ORL Dept. The doctoral degree in Audiology was a joint project with the hereditary hearing loss laboratory University of Antwerp, Belguim. It was the first genetic work up in Egypt related to the connexin 26 whole gene mutations on 2002. The main practice is in the field of pediatric audiovestibular medicine, rehabilitation of Audiovestibular disorders with vast experience in all types hearing devices, as well as genetic hearing loss. She is one of the editorial board in Egyptian Journal of OtoRhinoLaryngology ‘EJO’, and the International Journal of Speech, language pathology and Audiology; a reviewer for the international journal of pediatric ORL & Egyptian journal of ear, nose and throat. Since 2019, she is a member in the Research ethic Committee of Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams university as well as a member in the ORL Dept. research Committee. Being a university professor, she supervises and discussed the master and doctoral thesis for a large number of Audio-vestibular and ENT students. Dr Dalia is a member in the International Association of Physicians in Audiology 'IAPA' and Egyptian Audiovestibular Medicine Association 'EAVMA'. Moreover, she actively participated in hundreds of workshops and international conferences.
0000-0002-5644-2831: ORCID number