Power reflectance testing in newborns and infants.
INTRODUCTION
Auditory screening in newborns allows for detection of hearing problems early in life. However, middle ear diseases can make the diagnosis more difficult.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the power reflectance test as an indicator of the middle ear disease and to compare it to tympanometry.


METHODS
Case study evaluating 105 newborns and infants who participated in the audiology screening in 2013. The following exams were performed: transient otoacoustic emissions, power reflectance, and tympanometry.


RESULTS
In the optoacoustic emission evaluation, approximately 95% of the subjects passed the test. The specificity of power reflectance in all frequencies studied ranged from 75.3% to 95.9%, and that of tympanometry at 1000Hz ranged from 83% to 87.2%; there was agreement among these exams.


CONCLUSION
The outcome of power reflectance tests at 2000Hz and 3000Hz showed a correlation with tympanometry and otoacoustic emissions, and these were the most appropriate frequencies to determine middle ear disease through power reflectance measurement. It was also observed that values of power reflectance above reference levels suggested the presence of fluid in the middle ear, and thus a conductive hearing loss.
['Lima|Ticianna Garambone de Cerqueira|TG|', 'Becker|Helena Maria Gonçalves|HM|', 'Becker|Celso Gonçalves|CG|', 'Ferreira|Daniele Barreto da Cunha|DB|', 'Resende|Camilo Brandão de|CB|', 'Guimarães|Roberto Eustáquio Santos|RE|']
D000158:Acoustic Impedance Tests D000161:Acoustic Stimulation D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D004432:Ear, Middle D005260:Female D006314:Hearing Loss, Conductive D006801:Humans D007223:Infant D007231:Infant, Newborn D008297:Male D015997:Neonatal Screening D017084:Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
Middle ear Hearing tests Neonatal screening Orelha média Testes auditivos Triagem neonatal