Comparison of Pure Tone Audiometry and Otoacoustic Emission based Hearing Assessment for Classical Music Students

Since the enforcement of the Control of Noise at Work Regulations research has been undertaken in collaboration with the Royal Academy of Music investigating the hearing acuity of more than 5000 students between 2007 and 2021. Standard pure tone audiometric screening methods were employed for both entry and exit testing of undergraduate and postgraduate students. The results of these investigations have informed a pilot study, ran in September 2021, comparing two hearing health surveillance methodologies: pure tone audiometry and otoacoustics emissions involving 256 classical music students. This comparison was necessary as music students had been found to be able to game the Bekesy test procedure as a result of their acute listening ability. The results showed that otoacoustic emissions were able to identify, at an early stage, hearing damage in an additional 3.8% of students. The test procedure itself was found to be quicker, more convenient and offered greater objectivity without learning bias. This provides reassurance that otoacoustic emissions can be an excellent tool for assessing the hearing health of classical music students and identifying hearing damage at an early stage.