Project "Ears": Otologic Maintenance in a School for the Deaf

An otologic maintenance program, set up at WPSD in 1977-78, established operational guidelines for the identification, recording, remediation, and followup of external and middle ear problems in children with severe or profound hearing loss. Three school wide screenings were conducted (fall, winter and spring), each providing otoscopic and tympanometric data on 446 students. Any children identified with negative middle ear pressure greater than —100mm H₂O, or with external or middle ear pathologies classified as "urgent," were reevaluated weekly or daily, as needed. Almost 30% of the WPSD population were so identified at some time during the year, including 33 children with middle ear effusions. The importance of regular schoolwide otologic screening for hearing-impaired students is demonstrated, especially for children at the preschool and primary age level.