recruitment
Abnormal rapid growth of loudness perception in damaged inner ears, where soft sounds are inaudible but loud sounds seem normal or uncomfortably loud.
Full Definition
Recruitment is a characteristic of sensorineural hearing loss where the perceived loudness of sounds grows abnormally rapidly as intensity increases. Patients with recruitment cannot hear soft sounds due to elevated thresholds, but loud sounds may seem as loud or even louder than normal, creating a narrow dynamic range between threshold and uncomfortable loudness levels. This phenomenon results from outer hair cell damage in the cochlea while inner hair cells remain functional. Recruitment significantly impacts hearing aid fitting, requiring compression technology to manage the reduced dynamic range and prevent discomfort from amplified sounds.
Usage
Usage note: In audiology contexts, always refers to the loudness perception phenomenon, not military or employment recruitment.
In Context
- "The patient's recruitment made conventional linear amplification intolerable at moderate input levels." — Hearing aid consultation report
- "Loudness discomfort level testing confirmed positive recruitment requiring compression technology." — Audiological diagnostic summary