VALLEY ENT ASSOCIATES
Hearing Testing
expert ent care
Hearing Testing
Hearing screening and diagnostic testing evaluate how well a person detects and understands sound while helping identify the type, degree and possible location of hearing difficulty. Hearing changes are not always obvious, and even mild difficulty can affect conversations, learning, work and relationships. A screening provides a quick check for possible hearing concerns, while a comprehensive evaluation gathers more detailed information. The appropriate tests are selected according to the patient’s age, symptoms, responses and medical history.
Hearing screening and testing (audiometry) measures your ability to hear sounds across a range of pitches and volumes, giving your audiologist a clear picture of your hearing health. An audiologist uses a hearing test to measure your type, degree and configuration of hearing loss. An audiology evaluation consists of a series of one or more of these tests. Your audiologist will use your test results to create a treatment plan for your unique hearing loss. An audiology evaluation should be the first step for anybody who suspects a loss of hearing; the sooner it is diagnosed, the more successful treatment will be. Early detection means more options for you, your partner or a loved one with hearing loss.
What Are the Different Types of Hearing Tests?
An audiology evaluation includes a physical examination, a review of your medical history and diagnostic tests that measure different aspects of your hearing. You will be given any or all of the following tests:
Pure Tone Testing
Pure-tone testing (also known as pure tone audiometry) uses air conduction to measure your ability to hear sounds of different pitches and volumes.
How Is a Pure Tone Audiometry Test Done?
While wearing a pair of medical-grade headphones you will be asked to identify a series of tones by raising a hand, pressing a button or responding verbally.
Pure Tone Testing Results
The results are charted on an audiogram, a graph that shows the type, degree and configuration of your hearing loss by comparing pitch (frequency) with loudness (intensity). The recorded pattern will help your audiologist determine your hearing threshold (the level at which you can no longer detect sound).
Bone Conduction Testing
Bone conduction testing is another type of pure-tone test that measures the inner ear’s response to sound. Bone conduction audiometry testing is often used when there is damage or a blockage (like earwax) in the outer or middle ear.
How Is a Bone Conduction Testing Done?
Instead of sending the tones through the ear, this test is able to bypass the outer and middle ear and send the tone directly to the inner ear. Bone conduction testing uses a small vibrator placed behind the ear. The device sends out a vibration that passes through the skull bone to reach the inner ear.
Bone Conduction Testing Results
If the results of this test are different than the air conduction test, your audiologist can use this information to determine whether you have a conductive or sensorineural hearing loss. Bone conduction testing is often used in place of air conduction testing when an obstruction in the outer or middle ears is present.
Speech Testing
Speech (or word recognition) testing is used to measure your speech reception threshold (SRT), or the faintest speech you can understand 50 percent of the time. These results are compared with your pure-tone test results to confirm a diagnosis. Your ability to separate speech from background noise will also be recorded. Speech testing may be administered in either a quiet or noisy environment; results are recorded on an audiogram for easy visual reference.
Tympanometry
Tympanometry is a test of the middle ear used to detect fluid, wax buildup, eardrum perforations and tumors. It measures movement of the eardrum in response to air pressure; the results are recorded on a chart called a tympanogram.
Acoustic Reflex Testing
The acoustic reflex test measures involuntary muscle contractions of the middle ear, and is used to determine the location of your hearing problem (the ossicles, cochlea, auditory nerve, etc.) as well as the type of hearing loss.
Common Newborn Hearing Tests
Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR)
Auditory brainstem response testing is used to determine whether a specific type of hearing loss – sensorineural – exists. It is also frequently used to screen newborns for hearing problems.
In an ABR test, electrodes are attached to your head, scalp or earlobes, and you are given headphones to wear. Your brainwave activity is measured in response to sounds of varying intensities.
Otoacoustic Emissions (OAEs)
Otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) are sounds generated by vibrations of the hair cells in the cochlea of the inner ear. OAE testing uses a tiny probe fitted with a microphone and speaker to stimulate the cochlea and measure its response. Individuals with normal hearing will produce emissions; when a hearing loss exceeds 25-30 decibels, no sound will be produced. This test helps determine whether there is a blockage in the ear canal, excess fluid in the middle ear or damage to the hair cells of the cochlea. OAE testing is often included in newborn hearing screening programs.
More Than a treatment:
A Step Toward Lasting Relief
Conditions Treated:
Suspected hearing loss
Difficulty understanding speech, especially in background noise
Frequently asking others to repeat themselves
Turning the television or devices louder
Speech or language concerns in children
Failed newborn, school or workplace hearing screening
what are The benefits?
Detects hearing changes that may otherwise go unnoticed
Determines the type and degree of hearing loss
Measures hearing in each ear individually
Evaluates both sound detection and speech understanding
Establishes a baseline for monitoring future changes
Guides medical referrals and treatment recommendations
Helps determine whether hearing aids or other support may be appropriate
Audiology Expertise You Can Trust
Our ENT physicians are medical doctors (MDs/DOs) with advanced training in the diagnosis and treatment of complex ear disorders, including infections, tumors, balance issues, and underlying medical conditions that can affect hearing. We don’t just fit devices, we evaluate and treat the root causes of your hearing loss as part of your overall health.
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