HEARING TESTING

In order to provide our patients with the best solutions for their hearing loss, the audiologists at Hearing Associates will conduct a thorough hearing evaluation. These results will help us better understand your unique hearing loss and allow us to make specific recommendations to help improve your hearing. Our standard hearing test involves both learning about your hearing history and a physical examination of the inside of your ear.
 
Depending on what our doctors recommend, you may be asked to complete one or more of the following hearing tests. These tests will help us provide recommendations regarding which solutions are right for you.

Visual Inspection: We will use an otoscope as well as a video otoscope to examine the patient’s ear canal to be sure it is clear of debris. Our audiologists will be sure to remove any wax prior to performing a hearing evaluation. We have multiple methods of wax removal and will do so in a quick and painless manner.

Pure-Tone Testing

With the pure-tone hearing test, we record the softest sounds at each frequency you are able to hear, which helps us better understand the type of hearing issue you are experiencing.

Speech Testing

Speech testing is critical in assessing the patient’s ability to understand and process speech. This testing will guide the audiologist in providing the most appropriate recommendations for the patient.

Middle Ear Test 

As part of your comprehensive hearing evaluation, the audiologist will also examine your middle ear cavity by utilizing two types of middle ear tests, tympanometry and other immittance testing. These middle ear tests provide insight as to how the middle ear system is functioning and can provide information to the audiologist to provide an accurate and precise diagnosis.

• Tympanometry – assists in the detection of fluid in the middle ear, perforation of the eardrum, or wax blocking the ear canal. Tympanometry pushes air pressure into the ear canal, making the eardrum move back and forth. The test measures the mobility of the eardrum. Graphs are created, called tympanograms. These can reveal a stiff eardrum, a hole in the eardrum, or an eardrum that moves too much.
• Acoustic Reflex – When stimulated by loud sound, a tiny muscle in your ear will contract. By discovering the intensity in which the muscle contracts, it enables our audiologists to determine the type of hearing issue you are experiencing.

Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE’s) 

This is a test of the integrity of the inner ear organ (the cochlea). This test helps us to determine the function of the outer hair cells inside the cochlea. The information we obtain from this test is useful in providing an accurate diagnosis for our patients in determining the differentiation between a sensory and a neural hearing loss, and is a test commonly used for newborn hearing screenings as no patient response is required by the newborn.