Accuracy of school screenings in the identification of minimal sensorineural hearing loss.

Purpose: The goal of this study was to investigate how the use of a 25 dB HL referral criterion in school screenings affects the identification of hearing loss categorized as minimal sensorineural hearing loss (MSHL).

Method: A retrospective study applied screening levels of 20 and 25 dB HL at 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz in each ear to previously obtained pure-tone thresholds for 1,475 school-age children. In a separate prospective study, 1,704 children were screened at school under typical conditions, and a subsample had complete audiological evaluations.