App-based hearing screenings in family practice may improve hearing disorder diagnosis

Hearing screening in private family practice medicine using tablet applications

2025-04-30

(Press-News.org) App-Based Hearing Screenings in Family Practice May Improve Hearing Disorder Diagnosis

Background and Goal: Pure-tone audiometry, the gold standard for assessing hearing impairment, is costly and time-consuming. This study evaluated the acceptability and feasibility of hearing screening in the routine practice of private family medicine using two self-tests.

Study Approach: 516 consecutive patients aged older than 10 years attending three private French family-practice clinics wore calibrated Bluetooth headphones and completed two tablet-based hearing tests: SoTone, which measures pure-tone thresholds, and SoNoise, which assesses speech recognition in noise.

Main Results:

Of 516 patients eligible for screening, 219 (42%) completed the screening.

On average, it took six minutes and eight seconds for consent, instruction, and completion of testing.

Of the 219 people screened, 59 (27%) screened positive for some hearing impairment and were referred to an ENT specialist. Only 16 patients ultimately followed up, 14 of whom had confirmed hearing loss, and 8 received a prescription for hearing aids.

Why It Matters: The findings from this study show that tablet-based hearing tests may help general practitioners improve the diagnosis of hearing disorders.

Hearing Screening in Private Family Practice Medicine Using Tablet Applications

Jean-Charles Ceccato, et al

Montpellier Neuroscience Institute, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France

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App-based hearing screenings in family practice may improve hearing disorder diagnosis

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