Evaluation of Hearing Handicaps and Presbyacusis Using World Wide Web-Based Calculators

Abstract

AbstractThis article is a clinical report on the applicability of computer software in determining hearing handicaps and presbyacusis. The software is now World Wide Web based and can be implemented in a clinical setting by using JavaScript calculators housed on the World Wide Web at. Added features consist of calculating the maximum recommended allowable noise exposure using the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health 1997 frequencies in handicap determination and the projection of future audiometric thresholds using the International Standards Organization 1999 compression factor. A review of the literature and the theoretical and clinical applications of these new features are discussed. A guide in the selection of Web-based development software is also presented in the hope of encouraging other researchers to develop Web-based versions of their software applications. Abbreviations: AAO = American Academy of Otolaryngology; AAOO = American Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology; ASHA = American Speech-Language-Hearing Association; CHABA = Committee on Hearing, Bioacoustics, and Biomechanics for the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council; HTL = hearing threshold level; IARL = initial age-related loss; IHT = initial hearing threshold; ISO = International Standards Organization; NIL = noise-induced loss; NIOSH = National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health; OSHA = Occupational Safety and Health Administration; PARL = projected age-related loss