WRS
Also written as: WRS — Word Recognition Score
Abbreviation for Word Recognition Score, the percentage of monosyllabic words correctly identified by a patient in a standardised speech audiometry task.
Full Definition
WRS is the standard abbreviation for Word Recognition Score, a core metric in audiological assessment. It is obtained by presenting a list of phonemically balanced monosyllabic words at a suprathreshold level and calculating the proportion correctly repeated by the patient. WRS is used alongside pure-tone audiometry to characterise the nature and site of a hearing lesion, and to evaluate candidacy for and benefit from amplification or cochlear implantation. Editors should expand the abbreviation on first use in any document and be alert to the older, deprecated abbreviation 'SDS' (Speech Discrimination Score), which may appear in legacy documents and should be updated to WRS. The abbreviation should appear in upper case without periods.
Usage
Usage note: Expand on first use. Legacy documents may use 'SDS' (Speech Discrimination Score); update to WRS in accordance with current clinical terminology.
In Context
- "The WRS at 70 dB HL was 88% in the left ear and 52% in the right ear." — Audiological report
- "Editors should replace any instances of 'SDS' with the current preferred abbreviation WRS." — Editorial style guide note