School-age hearing screening: identification of hearing impairments in first grade students

Abstract: PURPOSE: to characterize the audiological profile of first grade students from municipal elementary schools in Caxias do Sul (RS), Brazil, using electroacoustic measures to investigate and identify the occurrence of hearing impairments in this population. METHODS: prospective descriptive quantitative cross-sectional study of 391 first grade students from municipal elementary schools in Caxias do Sul (RS), Brazil. Students were submitted to four audiological procedures for the hearing screening: meatoscopy, Transient Evoked Otoacustic Emissions, Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions, and tympanometry. Furthermore, caregivers answered a questionnaire regarding each child's development and otologic history. The students who presented hearing deficits on the hearing screening were referred for otorhinolaryngological and/or complete audiological evaluation. RESULTS: from the 782 ears evaluated, 85.4% presented normal results, and 14.6% showed alterations. In the meatoscopy, 6.3% of the ears showed alterations, while 94.8% passed the Transient Evoked Otoacustic Emissions and 95.8%, the Product-Distortion Otoacoustic Emissions. The tympanometry showed predominance of type A curves, followed by type C. Referrals were made for 14.6% of the students. CONCLUSION: the sample of this study was composed mostly by male school-age children with six years of age. From the 782 ears evaluated, 85.4% had normal results on the screening, and 14.6% showed alterations.