Date of Award

Spring 2014

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Audiology (AuD)

Department

School of Communication

First Advisor

Sheryl Shoemaker

Abstract

Currently, the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) recommends pure-tone audiometry as the preferred audiometric screening method of school-aged children; however, background noise is often present and can result in high referral rate. The current study's goal was to examine the effect of noise on the pass rate on transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) and pure-tone audiometric screening measures. Twenty normal hearing adults (M = 22.85), eighteen females and two males, were screened with TEOAEs and pure-tone audiometry in quiet and in different levels of noise (i.e., 40 dB SPL, 50 dB SPL, 60 dB SPL) in a sound-treated booth.

Pure-tone audiometry and TEOAEs were present at 40 dB SPL. At 50 dB SPL, a 90% pass rate was recorded for TEOAEs and 60% pass rate for pure-tone audiometry. In 60 dB SPL noise, a 70% pass rate was found for TEOAE screenings and a 15% pass rate was found for pure-tone screenings. The amplitude was not found to be significantly different for the right or left ear, suggesting participants had similar TEOAE amplitudes in all noise levels. A significant difference for the right ear TEOAE reproducibility was found for the quiet to 60 dB level, but no other noise level was found to be significant. The reproducibility for the left ear TEOAE was found to be significant at the 40 to 60 dB noise levels and the 50 to 60 dB noise conditions.

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