title: Validation of the self-reported hearing questions in the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing against the Whispered Voice Test.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Self report questions are often used in population studies to assess sensory efficacy and decline. These questions differ in their validity in assessing sensory impairment depending on the wording of the question and the characteristics of the population. We tested the validity of the self-report questions on hearing efficacy (self reported hearing, ability in following a conversation, use of a telephone and use of hearing aids) used in The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA).
  
  
  METHODS
  We tested sensitivity and specificity, positive and negative predictive values of each question against the Whispered Voice Test, a relatively easy to administer and cost effective alternative to the standard audiometric test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this population the question 'Is your hearing (with or without a hearing appliance)/ Excellent/Very Good/Good/Fair/Poor?' showed the best diagnostic value in relation to the other questions (sensitivity 55.56% and specificity 94.67%). The question 'Can you use a normal telephone?' was deemed ineffective because of a very poor sensitivity (5.56%) and was proposed for exclusion from subsequent waves of TILDA.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We showed that this validity check was useful to select the questions that most effectively assess hearing deficits and provided crucial information for the subsequent waves. We argue that longitudinal studies using self-reports of sensory efficacy would benefit from a similar check.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kenny Gibson
authors.forename: Hilary
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cronin
authors.forename: Rose Anne
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Kenny
authors.affiliation: The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing, TILDA, Trinity College Dublin, Chemistry Extension Building, Dublin, Ireland. asetti@tcd.ie.
authors.forename: Annalisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Setti
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing / Q000502:physiology*; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006320:Hearing Tests / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007494:Ireland; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D057566:Self Report; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires