Hearing habits of young adolescent students from public and private schools in the Brazilian Federal District

ABSTRACT Purpose: to analyze the hearing habits of a group of students between public and private schools and compare the degree of exposure to sound stimuli via earphones. Methods: 1,085 public and private school students received a questionnaire on hearing habits and exposure to amplified music. Their answers to these questions were analyzed and compared between the groups of students. The chi-square test compared hearing habits between public and private schools, with the statistical significance level set at 5% (p < 0.05). Result: in general, most students (92%) reported hearing habits of exposure to amplified music. Questionnaire answers indicated a high prevalence of both earphone use (92%) and attendance at places with loud music (63.6%). Conclusion: private school students use earphones more often than those from public schools.