Efficient hearing screening in noise-exposed listeners using the digit triplet test.

Abstract

Hearing screening in occupational medicine is generally based on pure-tone threshold audiometry. However, reliable and valid thresholds can only be obtained in a sound-proof room, using a high-quality, well-calibrated audiometer, and by a well-trained administrator. Thresholds also need to be determined for several audiometric frequencies. This makes the test time-consuming and expensive, which is not ideal for the screening of large populations. A Speech-In-Noise test (SPIN), by contrast, does not have the abovementioned requirements. Because it can be implemented as a quick automated self-test, possibly over the Internet, a SPIN test is highly advantageous for screening purposes. However, its sensitivity for (isolated) high-frequency hearing loss, as typically seen in noise-exposed listeners, was unclear up to present. In this study, the authors investigated the sensitivity and specificity of the Digit Triplet SPIN test for detecting and monitoring (early-stage) high-frequency hearing loss, and its similarity across two different language versions.