Abstract
We report 5 cases of functional deafness in children. The patients, 4 females and 1 male, ranged in age from 6 to 10 years. All cases had not complained of hearing loss and were detected by screening audiometry at their schools. Their hearing levels by pure tone audiometry ranged from 41 dB to 86 dB and the audiogram showed bilateral perceptive deafness. Although we could not determine the source of the conflict in schools or homes, two of the subjects were considered to be suffering from psychogenic hearing loss because of their singular responses to the audiometry or the progress of symptoms. On the other hand, it was considered that the other two children could not understand the standard instructions for the pure tone audiometry test. We suggest that a portion of the children who are detected to have a hearing loss by screening audiometry in schools may consist of children with psychogenic hearing loss and those who cannot understand the instructions for the pure tone audiometry.
