Hearing loss level admitted for acquisition of Group 2 driving licences is actually 35%, but this measurement is not standarized. In 35 drivers with Group 2 licence bearing of hearing loss, it was measured in the usual way -considering threshold as an average-, and also in accordance with valid legislation, which considers deafness when hearing thresholds are under 25 dB in each tone. Binaural hearing loss average was 41.3+/-6.3% for the first model, and 30.7+/-10.2% for the second. There was a good correlation between the two models by mean of lineal regression (y=1.4785x-30.382; R2=0.8467). In Group 2 licences, hearing loss average must be standarized in its quantifyng technique, because there is a wide difference in the results, depending on the model used to measure. In our country there are rules and regulations about quantifying for disable people, valid for establishing deafness measurement patterns in vehicle driving too. (Author/publisher)
Abstract