Remote auditory testing: Test-retest and user impressions

Abstract

The Portable Automated Rapid Testing (PART) application was developed to measure basic auditory processing abilities and has been shown to effectively measure these abilities in research and audiologic clinical settings. Here, the effect of testing environment and participant perception on testing location were evaluated comparing the performance of normal-hearing and hearing-impaired participants in their homes versus a clinical setting. Subjective data on participant impressions of testing environments was included to assess feasibility of testing outside a clinical setting, as patient comfort completing tests in environments without clinical supervision may play a role in their overall performance. An important component of implementing PART tests to the clinical test battery is preventing additional test time to an already lengthy audiologic clinical appointment. Though testing time in clinics is limited, the implementation of administering auditory tests from the PART test battery in the waiting room or at the patients’ home could provide critical additional information on their auditory processing ability while adding minimal time to appointments. Use of PART may enable access to a broader collection of testing that an audiologist can use to improve patients’ outcomes and address patients’ hearing concerns beyond a pure-tone hearing test without increasing current clinical test time.