The Effects of Early Middle Ear Pathology on Auditory Perception and Academic Achievement

Abstract

Two groups of children were compared to determine the effects of early middle ear pathology on the development of auditory perceptual skills and academic achievement. The conductive loss (CL) group consisted of 15 children, aged seven to nine years, with histories of middle ear pathology. The normal control (NC) group was matched for age, sex, and socioeconomic status and had negative histories of middle ear pathology. Both groups were from a suburban community of primarily middle socioeconomic status. A test battery consisting of 12 auditory perceptual tests as well as measures of academic achievement, non-verbal intelligence and visual perception was administered. Results showed that the overall performance of the CL group on the test battery was significantly lower than that of the NC group. Performance of the CL group was also significantly lower in specific auditory perceptual areas. No significant differences were found on tests of non-verbal intelligence or visual perception. Although scores were not significantly different on academic achievement tests, school records indicated that the CL loss group had received more special support services than the controls. This investigation suggests that early middle ear pathology may produce secondary effects that can persist well beyond the episodes of temporary conductive hearing loss.