Objectives: To determine and explore the potential use of uHear as a screening test for determining hearing disability by evaluating its accuracy in a clinical setting and a soundproof booth when compared to the gold standard conventional audiometry. .
Methods: Seventy Sultan Qaboos University students above the age of 17 years who had normal hearing were recruited for the study. They underwent a hearing test using conventional audiometry in a soundproof room, a self-administered uHear evaluation in a side room resembling a clinic setting, and a self-administered uHear test in a soundproof booth. The mean pure tone average (PTA) of thresholds at 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000 Hz for all the three test modalities was calculated, compared, and analyzed statistically. .
Results: There were 36 male and 34 female students in the study. The PTA with conventional audiometry ranged from 1 to 21 dB across left and right ears. The PTA using uHear in the side room for the same participants was 25 dB in the right ear and 28 dB in the left ear (3-54 dB across all ears). The PTA for uHear in the soundproof booth was 18 dB and 17 dB (1-43 dB) in the right and left ears, respectively. Twenty-three percent of participants were reported to have a mild hearing impairment (PTA > 25 dB) using the soundproof uHear test, and this number was 64% for the same test in the side room. For the same group, only 3% of participants were reported to have a moderate hearing impairment (PTA > 40 dB) using the uHear test in a soundproof booth, and 13% in the side room. .
Conclusion: uHear in any setting lacks specificity in the range of normal hearing and is highly unreliable in giving the exact hearing threshold in clinical settings. However, there is a potential for the use of uHear if it is used to rule out moderate hearing loss, even in a clinical setting, as exemplified by our study. This method needs standardization through further research.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4861391 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.5001/omj.2016.27 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Evaluating the accuracy of a self-administered smartphone hearing test application in a geriatric population.
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol
October 2024
Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
Background: As the global population ages, hearing loss becomes increasingly prevalent, and is associated with neurocognitive and psychiatric comorbidities, impacting quality of life. Early screening and timely intervention might prevent or delay cognitive decline, a gap in care that can potentially be addressed by self-administered smartphone hearing tests.
Objective: This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of Mimi™ (Berlin, Germany), a commercially available self-administered smartphone hearing test compared to pure tone audiogram (PTA) in terms of both hearing levels and hearing thresholds in our local geriatric population > 65 years-old.
Combined effect of anemia and chronic rhinitis on hearing loss in Korean adults: a nationwide observational study.
Epidemiol Health
October 2024
Departement of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea.
Objectives: Studies have suggested an association between hearing loss and anemia. Hearing loss has also been linked to rhinitis, which is characterized by inflammation of the nasal mucous membranes and sinus mucosa. Few studies have concurrently explored the relationships between hearing loss, anemia, and rhinitis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAssessing the accuracy and reliability of application-based audiometry for hearing evaluation.
Sci Rep
March 2024
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, 222-Wangshimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, 133-792, Korea.
Pure-tone audiometry (PTA) is the gold standard for assessing hearing loss. However, traditional PTA tests require specialized equipment, trained personnel, and a soundproof environment. Recently, smartphone-based PTA tests have been developed as an alternative method for hearing assessment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFComparisons of air-conduction hearing thresholds between manual and automated methods in a commercial audiometer.
Front Neurosci
December 2023
Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Objective: To investigate the correlation of air-conduction thresholds between automated audiometry in a non-isolated environment and manual audiometry in participants with normal hearing and different degrees of hearing loss.
Methods: Eighty-three participants aged 11-88 years old underwent automated pure-tone audiometry in a non-acoustically isolated environment, and the results were compared with those of manual pure-tone audiometry performed in a standard acoustically isolated booth, with the order of testing randomised. Six frequencies of 250, 500, 1,000, 2000, 4,000 and 8,000 Hz were tested.
Hearing screening using the uHear™ smartphone-based app: reproducibility of results from two response modes.
Codas
April 2023
Departamento de Fonoaudiologia, Universidade Federal da Bahia - UFBA - Salvador (BA), Brasil.
Purpose: Estimate the reproducibility of hearing screening results using the uHear™ smartphone-based app in two response modes: self-test response and test-operator.
Methods: Reliability study conducted with 65 individuals aged ≥18 years assisted at the Speech-language and Hearing Therapy clinic of a public higher-education institution. Hearing screening was conducted by a single researcher using the uHear app and earbud headphones in a soundproof booth.
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!