Age: 12

Gender: Female

The child arrived to the appointment wearing a t-shirt that said “I’m not deaf, I’m ignoring you.”  She was non-committal about whether she thought she had a hearing problem.  She had been screened at school on the request of her teacher and did not pass the screen by the school nurse.  (The school district is small, and does not have an audiologist.)  ”Linda” (name changed) had not been doing well in school, and is reported to say “huh” “what” etc.

Her health is good. There is no family history of hearing loss.  Linda indicates that she does not have any pain in her ears, nor ringing in the ears, nor dizziness.  She converses normally with the audiology student conducting the interview, but she is somewhat sullen and doesn’t make eye contact.

Otoscopy showed normal results. Middle ear testing (tympanograms and reflex testing) were likewise normal.  These results effectively rule out any conductive problems.