[Simulation of deafness in expertise affairs].

The simulation of deafness rarely occurs in the course of medical expertise. However, it is a problem that needs to be recognized and demonstrated by proving methods of investigation. For this purpose, a number of subjective and objective hearing tests exist which can provide evidence for the simulation of uni- or bilateral hearing loss. These methods include the measurement of oto-acoustic emissions, brainstem-evoked response audiometry and the determination of the stapedius reflex threshold as well as subjective methods such as Stenger- and Lee-test. Among the expertise carried out in our department during the past few years, we found 5 cases of simulation of deafness. In these cases -- as opposed to simulated traffic accidents -- there was no criminal prosecution regarding insurance fraud.