School-based hearing screening of first-grade students in Saudi Arabia: A pilot study

A 26.3% prevalence rate of PTA screening failure, and a 30.5% of middle ear pathologies were noted. Both parent and teacher questionnaires were ineffective tools for identifying hearing loss among first-grade children who failed PTA screening.Contribution: This pilot study recommends that primary schools incorporate hearing screening as a regular practice of their preventative healthcare system. The study emphasises the importance of establishing international standards for school-based hearing screening to enhance its efficacy and develop more effective hearing screening questionnaires.