A language-independent hearing screening self-test at school-entry.

The usage of a tablet-based language-independent self-test involving the recognition of ecological sounds in background noise, the Sound Ear Check, was investigated. The results of 692 children, aged between 5 and 9 years and 4 months, recruited in seven different countries, were used to analyze the validity and the cultural independence of test. Three different test procedures, namely a monaural adaptive procedure, a procedure presenting the sounds dichotically in diotic noise, and a procedure presenting all the sounds with a fixed signal-to-noise ratio and a stopping rule were studied. Results showed high sensitivity and specificity of all three procedures to detect conductive, sensorineural and mixed hearing loss > 30 dB HL. Additionally, the data collected from different countries were consistent, and there were no clinically relevant differences observed between countries. Therefore, the Sound Ear Check can offer an international hearing screening test for young children at school entry, solving the current lack of hearing screening services on a global scale.

Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life Questionnaire: Development and Validation of an ICF-Based Instrument.

OBJECTIVES: Self-assessment instruments are commonly used in audiological rehabilitation. However, several studies highlight the lack of multidimensionality in existing outcome measures, with the consequence that they only partially capture aspects of functioning in everyday life for people living with hearing loss. This study aimed to develop and investigate the content validity of a self-assessment instrument based on the validated Brief International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health Core Set for Hearing Loss. DESIGN: The design was a two-part instrument development study. The first part focused on the item-generation process of the instrument, named the Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life Questionnaire (HFEQ) during an experts' workshop. The second part focused on international content validation of the instrument using group interviews. Strategic sampling was used and 30 adults with hearing loss from India, South Africa, and the United States participated in the group interviews. RESULTS: The expert's workshop resulted in the first version of the HFEQ containing 30 items. The results from group interviews show that the content of the HFEQ was considered to be valid concerning its relevance, comprehensiveness, and comprehensibility. A majority (73%) of the HFEQ items were perceived by the participants as relevant and easy to comprehend. For the remaining 27% of the items, the content was perceived to be relevant in all countries, but some terms and expressions were reported to require rewording or clearer examples. These modifications will be made in the next step of the development process. CONCLUSION: Content validation of the HFEQ demonstrates promising results, with participants perceiving the content as relevant and comprehensible. Further psychometric validation is required to investigate other psychometric properties, such as construct validity and reliability. The HFEQ has the potential to become a valuable new instrument for assessing everyday functioning in people with hearing loss in audiological rehabilitation and in research.

A Content Analysis of YouTube Videos Related to Hearing Aids.

BACKGROUND: Increasingly, people access Internet-based health information about various chronic conditions including hearing loss and hearing aids. YouTube is one media source that has gained much popularity in recent years. PURPOSE: The current study examines the source, content, understandability, and actionability of YouTube videos related to hearing aids. RESEARCH DESIGN: Cross-sectional design by analyzing the videos at single point in time. STUDY SAMPLE: One hundred most frequently viewed videos in YouTube. INTERVENTION: Not applicable. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: The 100 most-viewed English language videos targeting individuals seeking information regarding hearing aids were identified and manually coded. Data collection included general information about the video (e.g., source, title, authorship, date of upload, duration of video), popularity-driven measures (e.g., number of views, likes, dislikes), and the video source (consumer, professional, or media). The video content was analyzed to examine what pertinent information they contained in relation to a predetermined fact sheet. Understandability and actionability of the videos were examined using the Patient Education Material Assessment Tool for Audiovisual Materials. RESULTS: Of the 100 most-viewed videos, 11 were consumer-based, 80 were created by professionals, and the remaining 9 were media-based. General information about hearing aids, hearing aid types, and handling and maintenance of hearing aids were the most frequently discussed content categories with over 50% of all videos commenting on these areas. Differences were noted between source types in several content categories. The overall understandability scores for videos from all sources were 74%, which was considered adequate; however, the actionability scores for all the videos were 68%, which is considered inadequate. CONCLUSION: YouTube videos about hearing aids focused on a range of issues and some differences were found between source types. The poor actionability of these videos may result in incongruous consumer actions. Content and quality of the information in hearing aid YouTube videos needs to be improved with input from professionals.