Prevalence of hearing impairment among university students.

The prevalence of hearing impairment in university students was determined from a 6-year, pure-tone hearing screening conducted at 20 dB HL for the octave frequencies from 500 to 4000 Hz. Of the 18,424 students tested, 1.2 percent failed the screening. The ratio of unilateral to bilateral hearing impairment was found to be approximately 1:1. Sensorineural hearing loss was four times more prevalent than conductive hearing loss in this population and significant hearing loss at 4000 Hz was evident in 61 percent of the males who failed the screen.