Two-level screening audiometry in public school

The two-level screening audiometry has been performed every year since 1980 in Kobe City. The method is as follows. When a child fails to respond to 30 dB at 1 kHz or 25 dB at 4 kHz, he is tested at a level 20 dB higher. Thus one can obtain more information as to the grade and type of the hearing impairment of a child than by the usual one-level screening method. According to the two-level test the hearing status of each child was classified into 9 types, i.e., 0 (normal) to 8. Thus the hearing types of both ears of each child are described in two digits, for example 3--6. This method may be useful for statistical purposes as well as for individual care of hearing impaired school children, especially for children who need educational care but cannot consult the otological clinics for some reason. From the otological point of view, our method offers valuable information about the unawared sensorineural deafness in children of school age. (The children themselves, school teachers, and parents do not aware of its presence.)