Abstract
Objective: Conductive hearing loss is one of the most common disabilities in children with Down Syndrome (DS). The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the results from tympanometry and transient otoacoustic emissions (TOAEs) in children with DS in special schools. Methods: We investigated the results of tympanometry and TOAEs testing for a group of 57 children with DS aged 7.1-16.2 years. Results: Type A tympanograms were found in 4 participants, type C1 in 2 participants, type C2 in 15 participants, and type B in 33 participants. TOAE was present in six and absent in 48 participants. Conclusion: A combination of tympanometry and TOAE is a fast, efficient and objective evaluation of middle ear and outer hair cell functions in children with DS. This test battery successfully examined over 80% of the children with mild to moderate intellectual impairment, who would be difficult to test using behavioral methods
Highlights
ConclusionA combination of tympanometry and transient otoacoustic emissions (TOAEs) is a fast, efficient and objective evaluation of middle ear and outer hair cell functions in children with Down Syndrome (DS)
Down Syndrome (DS) is a genetic disorder resulting from trisomy of chromosomal abnormality 21 affecting 1 in every 1000 live births [1,2]
A combination of tympanometry and transient otoacoustic emissions (TOAEs) is a fast, efficient and objective evaluation of middle ear and outer hair cell functions in children with DS. This test battery successfully examined over 80% of the children with mild to moderate intellectual impairment, who would be difficult to test using behavioral methods
Summary
A combination of tympanometry and TOAE is a fast, efficient and objective evaluation of middle ear and outer hair cell functions in children with DS. This test battery successfully examined over 80% of the children with mild to moderate intellectual impairment, who would be difficult to test using behavioral methods. The combination of failed tympanograms and absence of TOAEs indicated a high prevalence of conductive hearing loss in children with DS, possibly due to middle ear pathologies. Tympanometry and TOAE technology could be employed as tools for screening children with DS. Further diagnostic study is needed once middle ear pathology is resolved
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