An Evaluation of the Comparative Hearing Test

摘要

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of a newly developed tool to screen hearing. The Comparative Hearing Test (CHT) is designed to screen hearing ability using a personal computer or compact disc player. The CHT compares the ability of the patient to hear pure tones and speech to that of the examiner. Hearing ability was classified as normal, mild loss, moderate loss, or severe loss. The CHT results were compared to a conventional hearing test conducted with an audiometer. Fifty adults participated in the study. The sensitivity and specificity was found to be 86% and 88% respectively. Although the CHT has fair sensitivity and specificity, it does suffer from reliance upon the hearing of the examiner. This is an important limitation of this device and examiners are advised to exercise caution when interpreting test results.