What to Expect from a Comprehensive Hearing Test

A comprehensive hearing test will give you the information you need to make an informed decision about your hearing care. These tests go beyond simply determining if you have hearing loss; they help identify the specific nature and extent of any auditory issues. The process typically involves a series of assessments tailored to assess various aspects of your hearing ability. Understanding the results of these tests allows you and your audiologist to create a personalized treatment plan. But if you’ve never had a hearing test, you might wonder why they are essential and what you should expect.

Talking About Your Symptoms and History

Prior to your hearing test, discussing any hearing difficulties you may be experiencing is important. Talking through your current hearing experience is important for the audiologist to understand how they can help. You can also discuss your hearing history and if you have any medical history that may be relevant, like certain medications or needs during an examination.

How Long is a Series of Hearing Tests?

Your hearing tests can last anywhere between 30-60 minutes based on factors like age, requirements, hearing history and discussions before the test and about results.

What Tests May be Conducted?

A comprehensive hearing evaluation has multiple parts; this gives a full overview of the hearing ability of the patient. The methods used will vary based on the environment, the purpose of the test, and the age of the person.

• Speech test: There are several types of speech tests. The speech test can check how loud the speed needs to be before a person can hear it, and the other tests how well words are heard at a conversational level.
• Speech discrimination test: Speech discrimination and hearing loss usually happen at similar rates. The person having the test will be required to repeat some single-syllable words. The percentage of repeated words correctly determines the person’s hearing aid requirement.
• Speech reception threshold: The patient will repeat words back at different volumes, showing the lowest volume that speech can be recognized and heard.
• Pure-tone test: One of the most common hearing tests is the pure tone test. A range of tones are played at different frequencies and intensities. Each time the tone is heard, the person having the test will press a button or otherwise indicate that they have heard the sound. The pure tone test can also measure bilateral hearing loss or one-sided loss.
• Bone conduction test: A bone oscillator will be used in this test. It is a headband with a box that rests behind the ear (the mastoid bone). Just like the pure tone test, a range of tones will play at different frequencies. Unlike the other pure-tone test, which uses headphones, this one measures how the sound is heard through the vibrations of the mastoid bone.

This test can confirm if the hearing impairment is nerve or sensorineural rather than a blockage in the ear.

Tests of the Middle Ear

The middle ear comprises three bones, tubes and membranes that transmit sound from the outside into the inner ear. The middle ear test measures the function of the middle ear and is made of additional tests:

• Static acoustic impedance: Measures the air pressure flow in the ear canal to check for holes in the ear drum or blockages.
• Acoustic reflex threshold: Looking for the contraction of the tissue in the middle ear.
• Tympanometry: A range of air pressures will look for eardrum mobility, eardrum compliance and resting middle ear pressure.
• Auditory brainstem response: Three to four electrodes will be placed on the patient’s head and front of the ears, sounds will be delivered through earphones, and the electrodes measure the hearing nerve response to the sounds. The patient will need to lay perfectly still for this test, but for babies and young children, it can be done while they sleep.
• Otoacoustic emissions testing: The OAE is a test for the cochlea or the inner ear. It measures the sounds that the inner ear gives when responding to sounds. The hair cells in the inner ear vibrate and produce an echo that goes into the middle ear.

A comprehensive series of hearing tests will give your audiologist and you the information needed to make decisions for your future hearing health. This may include hearing aid options, which your audiologist will discuss with you when you have your results. If you want to have a hearing test or discuss your hearing, contact the Quality Hearing Aid Center at (248) 430-8791.