Development and evaluation of a novel user-operated slider-based audiometry method

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Hearing Science
• Medical Technology

Background:

• Traditional pure-tone audiometry requires trained professionals.
• User-operated methods could increase accessibility and patient engagement in hearing assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel user-operated audiometry method for determining pure-tone hearing thresholds.
• To assess the validity and reliability of this new method compared to standard manual audiometry.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving 37 adult participants (30 hearing-impaired, 7 normal-hearing).
• Participants underwent manual audiometry (six frequencies) followed by test-retests of a new slider audiometry method (eight frequencies).
• The System Usability Scale questionnaire was used to assess user experience.

Main Results:

• Slider audiometry showed significant differences in thresholds compared to manual audiometry for octave frequencies between 250-2000 Hz.
• No significant differences were found between methods at 4000 and 8000 Hz.
• Test-retests of the slider method demonstrated small mean differences and acceptable standard deviations, with an average usability score of 88.3.

Conclusions:

• Slider audiometry is a valid method at 4000 and 8000 Hz compared to manual audiometry.
• The method yielded significantly lower thresholds at lower octave frequencies (250-2000 Hz).
• The user-operated method is reliable for hearing threshold determination with good usability.