The effect of sleep deprivation on temporal resolution and listening effort of normal hearing young adults

Abstract

Background: Sleep deprivation is often caused by the demands of work, school, and social activities. A considerable amount of research has focused on the effects of sleep deprivation on the motor performances, mood, and cognitive functioning of an individual. The effect of sleep deprivation on the central auditory processes, however, has been insufficiently investigated. Objective: The aim of the study was to determine the influence of sleep deprivation on temporal resolution and listening effort. In addition, the impact of sleep deprivation on mood states was determined to supplement the information obtained regarding listening effort and temporal resolution. Method: A quasi-experimental, within-subject repeated-measures design was implemented. Twenty seven adults between the ages of 18 and 30 years (mean age 22.56) with normal hearing, normal middle ear functioning, and normal central auditory processes were recruited purposively from the University of Pretoria. Participants were tested using the Gaps-In-Noise (GIN) Test, Digits-In-Noise (DIN) Test, Profile of Mood States (POMS), and Listening Effort Test over a time period of three days on four occasions: the evening before and the morning after having had approximately 6 to 8 hours of sleep (NSDP); and the evening before and the morning after having to remain awake throughout the night (SDP). The results of the NSDP and SDP condition were subsequently compared. Results: The percentage of correct scores obtained by the participants on the Listening Effort Test in all five prescribed listening conditions did not significantly increase in the SDP condition. No significant difference was found when comparing the non-sleep-deprived (NSDP) condition with the SDP condition (p˃0.05), suggesting that further research is needed to investigate the effect of an increased sleep deprivation period on listening effort. No significant difference was found between the NSDP and the SDP condition (p>0.05) in the average SNR obtained in the DIN Test. Results of the GIN Test indicated that the approximate gap duration thresholds (AGDT) increased significantly and the percentage calculated decreased significantly in the sleep deprived (SDP) condition (p˂0.05). A night of sleep deprivation also caused significantly greater negative disturbances to all the mood states (anger, depression, fatigue, vigour, confusion and tension) as measured by the POMS. Thus, the Total Mood Disturbance appeared to be significantly larger after a night of sleep deprivation (p˂0.05). Conclusion: In this study sleep deprivation had an effect on temporal resolution. It also affected the different mood states, such as anger, confusion, fatigue, depression, and vigour, significantly. However, a 24 hour period of sleep deprivation did not seem to affect the results of the Listening Effort Test and the speech perception in noise skills as determined by the DIN Test.