Management of ear-canal collapse.

Thresholds were measured at 250, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, 6,000, and 8,000 Hz in 20 normal adult ears and in ten ears from adults with varying amounts of ear-canal collapse. To alleviate the attenuation caused by ear-canal collapse, ear-canal inserts, postauricular pads, or circumaural cushions (Telephonics 510-020) were used with earphones (TDH-49). The circumaural cushions provided the lowest thresholds for the listeners with ear-canal collapse. Although thresholds with the ear-canal inserts were comparable to those with the circumaural cushions for many of the listeners, the ear-canal inserts were not suitable for listeners with more severe ear-canal collapse because the insert was displaced when the supra-aural cushion was placed on the pinna. Thresholds with the postauricular pinna pads were higher than with the circumaural cushions for most individuals.