Table 2.

Diagnostic validity of the hearing scale differencea.

Hearing scale difference	Sensitivity, % (95% CI)	Specificity, % (95% CI)	PPVb, % (95% CI)	NPVc, % (95% CI)
5 hearing scales (25 dB )	95.5 (87.5-99.1)	66.7 (43.0-85.4)	90.1 (80.7-95.9)	82.3 (56.6-96.2)
6 hearing scales (30 dB)	92.5 (83.4-97.5)	85.7 (63.7-97.0)	95.4 (87.1-99.0)	78.3 (56.3-92.5)
7 hearing scales (35 dB)	91.0 (81.5-96.6)	90.5 (69.6-98.8)	96.8 (89.0-99.6)	76.0 (54.9-90.6)

^aHearing scale difference = hearing scale of impaired ear – hearing scale of contralateral ear.

^bPPV: positive predictive value.

^cNPV: negative predictive value.