✕
Share it

Contact me
English Braille Translator

Indian Language Braille

Hindi to Braille Gujarati to Braille Punjabi to Braille Bangla to Braille Malayalam to Braille Marathi to Braille Nepali to Braille
Text to Sign Language Jobs and Career Tools Videos Opinions Disability Management Laws and Policies Infographics Money Matters Disability Insurance Assistive Devices Contact me
WeCapable Site Logo

WeCapable Accessibility Tools

Skip to content
  • A
  • A+
  • A++
|

WeCapable

Be Empowered!

Hearing Impairment Disability Definition and Types

October 7, 2019

Learn all about definition and assessment of hearing impairment and deafness as disability. Learn how to get disability certificate for these conditions.

Hearing impairment is a partial or total inability to hear. It is a disability which is sub-divided in two categories of deaf and hard of hearing.

  • “Deaf” means persons having 70 dB hearing loss in speech frequencies in both ears.
  • “Hard of hearing” means person having 60 dB to 70 dB hearing loss in speech frequencies in both ears.

A pure tone audiometry test measures the softest, or least audible, sound that a person can hear. During the test, you will wear earphones and hear a range of sounds directed to one ear at a time. The loudness of sound is measured in decibels (dB).

Assessment of Hearing Impairment

Measurement of Air Conduction Thresholds (ACT)

  1. ACT is to be measured using standard Pure Tone Audiometry by an Audiologist for Right Ear and Left Ear separately
  2. In case of non-reliable ACT, additional tests are recommended such as Immittance, and Speech audiometry or Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) Testing
  3. Measuring ACT may be difficult in children aged 3-5 years. In such cases, Conditioned Pure Tone audiometry/Visual Reinforcement Audiometry (VRA) shall be conducted. ABR or Auditory Steady State Response (ASSR) testing can be advised for the estimation of ACT in infant and young children

Computation of Percentage of Hearing Disability

  1. Calculate Pure tone average of ACT for 500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, 4000 Hz for Right Ear and Left ear separately (whenever there is no response at any frequency ACT is to be considered as 95dB)
  2. Monaural percentage of hearing disability is to be calculated as per the ready reckoner given below separately for Right Ear and Left Ear
Monaural PTA in dB% of Disability
0 to 250
261
271
281
291
301
311
321
331
342
353
364
375
386
397
408
419
4210
4311
4412
4513
4614
4715
4816
4917
5018
5119
5220
5321
5422
5523
5624
5725
5826
5927
6040
6141.71
6243.42
6345.13
6446.84
6548.55
6650.26
6751.97
6853.68
6955.39
7057.1
7158.81
7260.52
7362.23
7463.94
7565.65
7667.36
7769.07
7870.78
7972.49
8074.2
8175.91
8277.62
8379.33
8481.04
8582.75
8684.46
8786.17
8887.88
8989.59
9091.3
9193.01
9294.72
9396.43
9498.14
95100

Formula for Calculating Percentage of Hearing Disability

Percentage of Hearing Disability = (Better ear % of hearing disability x 5) + (Poorer ear % of hearing disability) / 6

WHO Hearing Impairment Grading

Grade of impairment*Corresponding audiometric ISO value**PerformanceRecommendations
* Grades 2, 3 and 4 are classified as disabling hearing impairment (for children, it starts at 31 dB)
** The audiometric ISO values are averages of values at 500, 1000, 2000, 4000 Hz.
0 – No impairment25 dB or better
(better ear)
No or very slight hearing problems. Able to hear whispers.
1 – Slight impairment26-40 dB
(better ear)
Able to hear and repeat words spoken in normal voice at 1 meter.Counseling. Hearing aids may be needed.
2 – Moderate impairment41-60 dB
(better ear)
Able to hear and repeat words spoken in raised voice at 1 meter.Hearing aids usually recommended.
3 – Severe impairment61-80 dB
(better ear)
Able to hear some words when shouted into better ear.Hearing aids needed. If no hearing aids available, lip-reading and signing should be taught.
4 – Profound impairment including deafness81 dB or above
(better ear)
Unable to hear and understand even a shouted voice.Hearing aids may help understanding words. Additional rehabilitation needed. Lip-reading and sometimes signing essential.

WHO hearing impairment grading

Disability Benefits

Hearing Impairment is recognized as a disability under RPWD Act 2016 in India. People with benchmark hearing disability can claim benefits provided under various government schemes. You should visit a government hospital to get disability certificate for hearing impairment.

Lalit Kumar is a Polio Survivor.

He is the founder of projects like Kavita Kosh, Gadya Kosh, TechWelkin and WeCapable. He loves finding useful things on Internet and knows how to put them together to create a bigger solution. He is passionate about technology, languages and literature.

Last updated: 7 October 2019 | Published on: 7 October 2019 | Published by the Team of Lalit Kumar | Filed as:
Home » Disabilities » Hearing Impairment Disability Definition and Types

More Useful Articles on WeCapable

  1. Specific Learning Disability: Definition, Examples, Types
  2. Hemophilia: Types, Definition, Genetics, Treatment, Disability
  3. Speech and Language Disability: Definition, Examples, Certificate
  4. Best Screen Readers for Persons with Visual Impairment
  5. Dwarfism: Criteria, Disability, Certificate, Types, Causes
  6. Thalassemia: Disability, Types, Major, Minor

Disabilities

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

banner of the book 'Vitamin Zindagi'
online jobs and career for disabled persons
famous disabled persons in India
disability statistics of India
RPWD Act 2016
Unique Disability ID

Be Part of Our Family!

Want to share your story with us? Write to us: contact.wecapable@gmail.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@wecapable).

More Stories

  • Different Types of Disabilities: List of 21 Disabilities
  • Blindness: Definition, Meaning as a Disability
  • Divyangjan is a Controversial Term; Stop Using It: UN Committee
  • Low Vision: Definition, Causes and Disability
  • Leprosy Cured Persons with Disabilities

21 Types of Disabilities

1. Blindness
2. Low-vision
3. Leprosy Cured persons
4. Hearing Impairment
5. Locomotor Disability
6. Dwarfism
7. Intellectual Disability
8. Mental Illness
9. Autism Spectrum Disorder
10. Cerebral Palsy
11. Muscular Dystrophy
12. Chronic Neurological conditions
13. Specific Learning Disabilities
14. Multiple Sclerosis
15. Speech and Language disability
16. Thalassemia
17. Hemophilia
18. Sickle cell disease
19. Multiple Disabilities including deaf-blindness
20. Acid Attack victims
21. Parkinson’s disease

© 2007-2019 WeCapable.
Disclaimer: The contents of this site are for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing found on this website is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always seek the advice of your doctor and other qualified healthcare professionals regarding a medical condition or mental disorder. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on our site.