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arXiv · 2608.05665

The Virtual Hearing Clinic (VHC)- a modular online platform for hearing research and hearing health care

Lena Schell-Majoor·Kim M. Rullmann·Tobias Bruns·Theresa Jansen·Volker Hohmann·Hendrik Kayser·Birger Kollmeier
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Abstract

Objective: The aim is to introduce the concept of the Virtual Hearing Clinic (VHC), give an overview of the current status and exemplify its feasibility with data from a diagnostics module obtaining hearing thresholds. Design: The architecture of the VHC is described and an overview of functional modules that have been developed and tested in respective studies is given. As a functional example data from an experiment is presented. Hearing thresholds were obtained from 20 subjects with hearing loss with the VHC using the Graded Response Bracketing (GraBr) procedure and compared to reference thresholds obtained with a clinical audiometer. Results: Median VHC-based hearing thresholds over all frequencies did not differ significantly from the reference with values of 57.4 dB SPL (VHC) and 55.5 dB SPL (reference). The shape of the frequency-dependent thresholds was also found to be very similar for 250 Hz to 4 kHz. Results for 6 kHz showed larger differences. Conclusion: The VHC is suitable as a mobile hearing health application and to collect data for audiological research. By offering flexibility in time and location it can lower barriers for hearing health care and enable collecting large datasets that are needed for the advancement of data-driven audiology.

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Lena Schell-Majoor, Kim M. Rullmann, Tobias Bruns, Theresa Jansen, Volker Hohmann, Hendrik Kayser, Birger Kollmeier. 2026-08-06. The Virtual Hearing Clinic (VHC)- a modular online platform for hearing research and hearing health care. https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.05665

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