Sensitivity and Specificity of Portable Hearing Screening in Middle-Aged and Older Adults

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Hearing screening allows the identification of individuals with hearing loss. Aim: To determine the sensitivity and specificity of a portable hearing screening device in middle-aged and older adults using the manufacturer scoring and a scoring system proposed by the researchers. Methods: In this transversal study, participants underwent anamnesis, otoscopy, and hearing screening using portable equipment. After this, a pure tone audiometry was performed, with participants classified into two groups with and without hearing loss. The sensitivity and specificity of the hearing screening were calculated for the right and left ears using two methods of interpretation: the original method recommended by the manufacturer (criteria 1) and the method proposed by researchers (criteria 2). Results: The sample consisted of 55 individuals, 83.6% (n = 46) of whom were women. Per criteria 1, the sensitivities were 26.3 (right ear) and 21.4% (left ear). The specificity was 100% for both ears. Using criteria 2, the sensitivity was 94.7 (right ear) and 100% (left ear). The specificity was 74.3 (right ear) and 65.9% (left ear). Conclusion: This study showed that the criteria proposed by the manufacturer presented low sensitivity in the hearing screening. The criteria proposed by the researchers to achieve a more efficient performance reached high and balanced values for sensitivity and specificity...