Comparison of TEOAE with Play audiometry for screening hearing problems in children

To evaluate the usefulness of transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) for hearing screening of children at around 3 years of age, measurements were done together with Peep show test in a group of 47 children (n = 93 ears). A stimulus sound of 30 dB nHL was used as the screening intensity for the TEOAE measurement. All measurements were done with awake subjects. Twenty seven ears, all of which were revealed to have normal hearing (within 20 dB HL, assessed by Peep show test) and tympanograms, showed positive TEOAE results. Furthermore, TEOAEs were sensitive to the presence of middle ear conductive impairment, showing negative results. We conclude that, compared with Play audiometry, TEOAE measurements can not yield quantitative results, but can yield qualitative results for determining the presence of hearing impairment without sedative induced sleeping in this critical age of children.