SERVICES
HEARING TESTING

Hearing loss can occur in either ear, sometimes at the same time, and the severity can range from mild to severe. Any individual is prone to hearing loss, but it is most likely to happen as a person ages and is over sixty. Statistics suggest that hearing loss is just as common as cancer and diabetes and has an effect on your entire lifestyle, affecting your ability to communicate.

Working in a noisy environment and having a family history of hearing impairment are additional risk factors. Other causes are related to:

• Ototoxic drugs
• Head injury
• Autoimmune disorders
• Meniere’s disease (Inner ear disease)
• Ear tumour (acoustic neuroma)

SIGNS OF HEARING LOSS

• Inability to keep up with the conversation
• Repeatedly asking to turn up the volume on the television
• Asking someone to repeat what they said
• Avoiding social events for fear of not being able to hear
• Ringing in the ear (s), also known as tinnitus
• Being constantly exhausted after socialising

GET YOUR EARS TESTED

Getting your hearing tested will determine whether you are suffering from hearing loss. If this is the case, fitting hearing aids form the next step of the process. A hearing test is a widely accessible and straightforward procedure that a specialist audiologist performs. Before the test, your audiologist will ask questions related to the challenges you face when it comes to your hearing as well as any family or genetic history of the condition.

Various hearing tests exist to assess vital auditory systems and differ according to age. There are specialised tests that happen within a sound-proof room, inside a booth and through the use of headphones. At times, a visual exam of the inside of the ear is necessary. Your audiologist uses a thin, lighted tube called an otoscope to see inside the ear canal to check for something sticky like earwax that could be the cause of hearing loss.

Inside the booth, you will be asked to press a button when you hear soft notes from the spectrum of sound you are exposed to. Pure tone audiometry evaluates your level of hearing loss and at which frequencies are most damaged. The next part of the test is to listen for and repeat sounds at different decibels.

You may also be instructed to put in foam or plastic plugs during a hearing test to check for acoustic reflexes. An acoustic reflex occurs when the stapedius muscle contracts involuntarily in response to high-intensity noise.

A tympanometry test is an additional test that assesses the health of the eardrum by measuring its motility and function. The results of a tympanometry test are shown on a graph, which specialists refer to as a tympanogram.

Generally, an audiogram indicates soft noises you hear at varying pitches. The outcome of the test determines the level of treatment and the type of plan your audiologist initiates to correct hearing loss.