ABSTRACT
Among persons with intellectual disability, the prevalence of hearing impairments is high. During the German Special Olympics Summer Games 2004, a hearing screening was conducted on 755 athletes with intellectual disabilities. Obligatory screening included ear inspection and recording of otoacoustic emissions, and optional screening included tympanometry and brief pure-tone audiometry. 38.0% of the athletes failed the screening. 53.0% needed ear wax removal. 56.1% of the fails indicated sensorineural hearing loss and 13.6% indicated mixed hearing loss. 12.5% of the fails were caused by unremovable ear wax, 1.4% by ear canal affections, and 16.4% by middle ear problems. Left ear fails were more frequent than right ear fails. A peripheral hearing disturbance can thus be expected in every third subject. The high failure rate, a considerable percentage of previously undetected profound hearing loss (1.1%), and the frequent need for ear wax removal, suggest that nearly half of persons with intellectual disabilities need regular otological or audiological consultations.
