![Sample our Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing & Allied Health journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5944/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Medicine-Dentistry-Nursing-Allied-Health.jpg"})
Abstract
A threshold of octave masking test (TOM) has been suggested as a substitute for measuring aural harmonic thresholds. The test involves measuring masking at one octave above the masker (Mr). This study was conducted to investigate further the value of the TOM test in differential diagnosis. A group of normal and sensori-neural impaired listeners were administered the TOM at Mr conditions 500, 1 000, and 2 000 Hz. The results showed significant (0.05) differences between the normal and abnormal hearing groups. Excellent test-retest reliability at all Mr conditions was reported. When the TOM data for the two groups were compared with the aural harmonic thresholds reported by previous researchers, close agreement was found to exist. Thus, aural harmonic levels and TOM values appear to provide the same information. The TOM is easy to administer, does not require sophisticated equipment, and data can be obtained in a very short period of time. Though continued research is necessary, this test appears to have potential as a special test in audiometric diagnosis.