App-Based Hearing Screenings in Preschool Children With Different Types of Headphones: Diagnostic Study

Abstract

Abstract BackgroundHearing disability in preschool children can delay or impact oral communication and social skills. Provision of hearing screening tests by standard audiometry in low- to middle-income countries is problematic due to a lack of pediatric audiologists, standard hearing equipment, and standard soundproof rooms. Therefore, an innovative hearing screening tool that is easily accessible and inexpensive such as a mobile app should be considered. Headphones have been a crucial part of hearing screenings. Audiometric headphones, which serve as the reference standard, have been used in most studies. However, since audiometric headphones are not accessible in rural areas, we hypothesized that generic headphones can also be used in hearing screenings. ObjectiveThis study aimed to determine the sensitivity, specificity, κ coefficiency, and time consumption of the PASS-Pro (Preschool Audiometry Screening System–Pro) app when using TDH39 headphones, Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO headphones, and generic earmuff headphones compared to standard conditioned play audiometry. MethodsWe recruited preschool children aged 4 to 5 years to participate in this study. The children received 3 PASS-Pro screening tests using different types of headphones in a quiet room and 1 standard conditioned play audiometry in a soundproof room. All tests were administered in random order. The agreement coefficient, sensitivity, specificity, and mean test duration were determined. ResultsA total of 44 children participated in this study. For mild hearing loss screening, the κ coefficients between standard conditioned play audiometry and the PASS-Pro app using TDH39 headphones, Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO headphones, and generic earmuff headphones were 0.195, 0.290, and 0.261 (PPPPPP ConclusionsThe PASS-Pro app, used with generic headphones, is effective for conducting hearing screening tests in preschool children with high sensitivity and specificity.