Der Mini-Audio-Test (MAT) - eine Screeningmethode auf Schwerhörigkeit für Haus- und Fachärzte

Background In Germany, about 15 million people are suffering from hearing loss (HL), whereas only 16 % are using hearing aids. Untreated hearing loss may lead to severe complications (e. g. social isolation, depression, progress of dementia). An early and widespread screening, beginning at the age of 50, is meant to improve this shortage in medical care. By this study, the Mini-Audio-Test (MAT), a six-question and three-step answers containing questionnaire on subjective HL, should be verified on a normal collective of subjects (sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive predictive value (Ppv)). Methods 943 subjects (older 50 years) without any history of ear disease answered the MAT and received pure-tone audiometry. The Se, Sp, and Pv to detect a relevant HL with the MAT for the age-group < 60 years (AG1) and ≥ 60 years (AG2) were determined. Results The Se for AG1 was 0.66, the Sp 0.61, the Ppv 0.60, for AG2 the Se was 0.47, the Sp 0.80, the Ppv 0,89. Conclusion Following our results, the MAT is recommended as a general screening-tool for HL in patients over 50 years of age for general practitioners. Hereby, severe secondary diseases (loss of cognitive power, risk of fall, depression, dementia) could be influenced positively.