PURPOSE: To compare the difference between the performances of right and left ears in behavioral tests of auditory processing and to compare the results obtained by subjects with different stuttering severity classifications in each auditory processing test. METHODS: Fifty six subjects (49 male, 7 female), with ages ranging from four to 34 years, were referred to auditory processing evaluation as a complement to speech and language evaluation. All subjects were submitted to auditory, speech and language evaluation. Disfluency severity was classified according to the Riley Stuttering Severity Index as: very mild, mild, moderate, severe and very severe. Behavioral auditory processing tests were selected and analyzed regarding the patients' age and following the proposal of Pereira & Schochat (1997). RESULTS: Mild stuttering was prevalent among subjects with ages ranging from four to seven years and from 12 to 34 years. Moderate stuttering was the most prevalent degree among subjects with eight to 11 years old. Auditory processing disorders were observed in 92,85% of the subjects tested. Significant statistical differences between left and right ears were found in directed attention conditions for the nonverbal dichotic test, in all age ranges. No differences were found among subjects with different stuttering severity classifications in any of the auditory processing tests carried out. CONCLUSIONS: Right ear showed better results than left ear in both monotic and dichotic tests. Stuttering severity didn't interfere with the results of each test.
Stuttering; Auditory perceptual disorders; Hearing; Speech disorders
