An fNIRS dataset for multimodal speech comprehension in normal hearing individuals and cochlear implant users

Understanding cortical processing in cochlear implant (CI) users is
crucial for improving speech rehabilitation outcomes. Functional
near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) provides a non-invasive,
implant-compatible method for assessing cortical activity during speech
comprehension. This is a multimodal fNIRS dataset collected from 46 CI
users and 26 normal hearing (NH) controls. Participants completed a
clinically relevant speech comprehension task using the German Matrix
Sentence Test (OLSA) under speech-in-quiet, speech-in-noise, audiovisual
speech, and visual speech (i.e., lipreading) conditions. fNIRS recordings
covered key cortical regions involved in speech processing, including the
prefrontal, auditory, and visual cortices. In addition to fNIRS data, we
provide detailed metadata, including patient history, hearing test
results, behavioral measures, and spatially registered probe positions.
The dataset represents a comprehensive fNIRS resource for investigating
multimodal speech understanding in CI users.