title: Audiometric thresholds among a Canadian sample of 10 to 17 year old students.
abstract: A total of 237 students, 10 to 17 years of age, from 14 schools underwent hearing evaluations. Otoscopic examination, tympanometry and air-conduction pure tone audiometry was conducted at low (0.5, 1, 2 kHz) and high (4 and 8 kHz) frequencies. In all schools, hearing thresholds were measured with headphones in a portable audiometric booth. Socio-demographic information from students and their parents were collected using questionnaires. Overall, the prevalence of any hearing loss greater than 15 dB was 22.3% for low or high frequency pure tone averages. Self-reported symptoms of hearing loss, such as tinnitus, difficulty following a conversation with background noise, and having to turn up the TV/radio more than in the past, were associated with audiometric thresholds, most notably at 4 kHz. These study findings are among the first to provide a detailed characterization of hearing status in a sample of youth in a Canadian demographic.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1H8M5.
authors.forename: Andre M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Marcoux
authors.forename: Katya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Feder
authors.forename: Stephen E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Keith
authors.forename: Leonora
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Marro
authors.forename: Marianne E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: David S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Michaud
mesh_terms: D000158:Acoustic Impedance Tests / Q000379:methods; D000293:Adolescent; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone / Q000379:methods*; D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing / Q000502:physiology*; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009622:Noise; D009864:Ontario / Q000453:epidemiology; D010470:Perceptual Masking / Q000502:physiology; D010865:Pilot Projects; D014012:Tinnitus / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology