Related Experiment Videos
Parents cannot detect mild hearing loss in children. First place--Resident Clinical Science Award 1998
R Brody1, R M Rosenfeld, A J Goldsmith
1Department of Otolaryngology, State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn College Hospital, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA.
Summary
Parent surveys can reliably gauge perceptions of a child's hearing but do not accurately detect mild hearing loss from middle ear effusion (MEE). Abnormal static admittance, however, is a key indicator of hearing impairment in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Otolaryngology
- Audiology
- Child Health
Background:
- Otitis media with effusion (MEE) is a common childhood illness frequently causing persistent middle ear effusions.
- Identifying children with MEE-related hearing loss is crucial for timely intervention.
- Current methods for assessing hearing loss in young children can be challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a self-administered parent survey (HL-7) to identify children at high risk for mild hearing loss due to MEE.
- To assess the reliability and validity of the HL-7 survey in a pediatric population.
- To explore the relationship between parent-reported hearing, tympanometric measures, and objective hearing levels.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 115 children with MEE was evaluated.
- Parents completed the 7-item HL-7 survey and a visual-analog scale assessing their child's hearing.
- Objective audiological assessments included static admittance and gradient measurements.
- HL-7 reliability and validity were compared against 4-frequency pure-tone average (PTA) hearing levels.
Main Results:
- The HL-7 survey demonstrated good test-retest reliability and internal consistency.
- Survey scores correlated well with parents' global hearing ratings but not with PTA hearing levels.
- Abnormal static admittance (<0.2 cc) was significantly associated with a mean 7-dB hearing level decrease (P=0.02).
- Tympanometric gradient did not correlate with PTA, but abnormal static admittance indicated a risk for hearing loss.
Conclusions:
- The HL-7 survey is a reliable tool for measuring parental perception of hearing in children.
- Parental perception, as measured by the HL-7, is not an accurate predictor of mild hearing loss in children with MEE.
- Abnormal static admittance is a significant risk factor for hearing loss in children with middle ear effusion.