Hearing loss is challenging, if not impossible, to diagnose by yourself. To illustrate, you can’t really evaluate your level of hearing by merely putting your ear next to a speaker. So getting a hearing test will be vital in figuring out what’s going on with your hearing.
Now, before you start sweating or anxiously fidgeting, it’s significant to point out that the majority of hearing tests are rather easy and involve nothing more difficult than putting on a pair of fancy headphones.
But we get it, people don’t like tests. Whether you’re a high school student or middle-aged medical patient, tests are really just no fun. Taking a little time to get to know these tests can help you feel more prepared and, as a result, more relaxed. There’s virtually no test easier to take than a hearing test!
What is a hearing test like?
Talking about making an appointment to get a hearing test is something that is not that uncommon. And the phrase “hearing test” is something we’ve probably talked about occasionally. Perhaps, you’ve heard that there are two kinds of hearing tests and you’re wondering what they’re all about.
Well, that’s not completely accurate. Because you may undergo a few different types of hearing tests, as it turns out. Each of these tests will provide you with a specific result and is created to measure something different. The hearing tests you’re most likely to encounter include the following:
- Pure-tone audiometry: This is the hearing test you’re likely most familiar with. You listen for a sound on a pair of headphones. Hear a tone in your right ear? Raise your right hand. Hear the tone in your left ear? Same thing! This will test your ability to hear a variety of frequencies at a variety of volumes. It will also measure whether you have more significant hearing loss in one ear than the other.
- Speech audiometry: In some cases, hearing speech is a problem for you despite the fact that you can hear tones just fine. That’s because speech is typically more complex! This test also features a set of headphones in a quiet room. Instead of making you focus on tones, this test will be comprised of audible speech at different volumes to detect the lowest level you can hear a word and still understand it.
- Speech and Noise-in-Words Tests: Obviously, conversations in the real world happen in settings where other sounds are present. A speech and noise-in-words test will go through the same process as speech audiometry, but the test takes place in a noisy room instead of a quiet one. This can help you figure out how well your hearing is functioning in real-world situations.
- Bone conduction testing: How well your inner ear is working will be established by this test. A little sensor is placed next to your cochlea and another is put on your forehead. A small device then receives sounds. How effectively sound vibrations travel through the ear is measured by this test. If this test establishes that sound is traveling through your ear effectively it may indicate that you have a blockage.
- Tympanometry: Occasionally, we’ll want to check the overall health of your eardrum. This is accomplished using a test called tympanometry. During this test, a small device will gently push air into your ear and measure just how much your eardrum moves. The results of this test can reveal whether your eardrum has a hole, fluid behind your eardrum membrane, and more.
- Acoustic Reflex Measures: A tiny device measures the muscle response of your inner ear after sending sound to it. It all happens by reflex, which means that the movements of your muscles can tell us a lot about how well your middle ear is working.
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR): An ABR test attempts to measure how well the brain and inner ear are reacting to sound. This is accomplished by putting a couple of strategically placed electrodes on the outside of your skull. This test is entirely painless so don’t worry. That’s why people from newborns to grandparents get this test.
- Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) Testing: This diagnostic is made to track how well your cochlea and inner ear are functioning. It does this by tracking the sound waves that echo back from your inner ear into your middle ear. This can detect whether your cochlea is working or, in some situations, if your ear is blocked.
What can we discover from hearing test results?
It’s likely, you probably won’t take every single one of these hearing tests. We will choose one or two tests that best address your symptoms and then go from there.
What do we look for in a hearing test? A hearing test can sometimes uncover the cause of your hearing loss. The hearing test you take can, in other instances, simply help us rule out other causes. Whatever hearing loss symptoms you’re dealing with will ultimately be determined.
Here are a few things that your hearing test can uncover:
- Which frequency of sound you have the hardest time hearing (some individuals have a difficult time hearing high frequencies; other people have a hard time hearing low pitches).
- How much your hearing loss has advanced and how severe it is.
- The best strategy for treating your hearing loss: We will be more effectively able to address your hearing loss once we’ve established the cause.
- Whether you are dealing with hearing loss or experiencing the symptoms related to hearing loss.
Is there a difference between a hearing screening and a hearing test? It’s kind of like the difference between a quiz and a test. A screening is really superficial. A test is a lot more in-depth and can provide usable information.
The sooner you get tested, the better
So as soon as you observe symptoms, you need to schedule a hearing test. Take it easy, you won’t need to study, and the test isn’t stressful. Nor are hearing tests invasive or generally painful. If you’re wondering, what you shouldn’t do before a hearing test, don’t worry, we will provide you with all of that information.
It’s simple, just call and schedule an appointment.