Hearing assessment aboard the International Space Station

This study undertakes to refine the understanding of the accuracy of a novel PC-based hearing assessment utilized aboard the International Space Station. During the design and construction of the ISS, time and funding constraints led to engineering compromise related to acoustics, resulting in a vehicle with excessive noise levels. To gain insight into crewmember hearing changes, a computer-based hearing assessment tool was developed, and was routinely administered by crewmembers and its data analyzed on the ground. In this study, data collected before return to earth was compared to standard pure tone audiometric data collected after landing, with the intent to demonstrate that these values were essentially identical, and that data collected onboard the ISS can be interpreted as if it were pure-tone audiometric data. However, statistical analysis of this data concluded instead that the onboard test tends to underestimate the hearing threshold, and should be further corrected or interpreted accordingly.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Medical Science

Level thesis:degree_level

Master

Grantor

The University of Texas Medical Branch

Year dc:date.issued

2010

Author dc:creator

• Stephen Forrest Hart

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Richard T. Jennings M.D.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Deborah L. Carlson Ph.D.
• Billy U. Philips Ph.D.

• NIHL
• audiogram
• astronaut

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright © is held by the author. Presentation of this material on the TDL web site by The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston was made possible under a limited license grant from the author who has retained all copyrights in the works.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Dc Identifier Other

etd-11172006-111413

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:utmb-ir.tdl.org:2152.3/258