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Comparison of pure tone and transient otoacoustic emissions screening in a grade school population
M P Sabo1, R Winston, J D Macias
1Department of Audiology, Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Phoenix, Arizona 85006, USA.
Hypothesis:
Otoacoustic emissions provide an alternative to traditional pure tone hearing screening in a diverse grade school population.
Background:
Mandated pure tone hearing screening programs for grade school children have several significant limitations. Otoacoustic emissions have been shown to be a reliable screening test in newborns, but there are no data on screening a diverse grade school population.
Methods:
Five hundred eighty-three grade school children in four separate school populations were screened for hearing loss using the standard pure tone four-frequency protocol and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions. Students failing either test received a comprehensive audiogram by an audiologist that served as the "gold standard." Sensitivity and specificity of both tests were compared.
Results:
The sensitivity and specificity of pure tone screening was 87% and 80%, respectively, compared with 65% and 91% for transient evoked otoacoustic emissions.
Conclusion:
Pure tone screening was a statistically significant better screening test for detecting hearing loss in this population of grade school children.
