Understanding hearing tests can be challenging, but you don’t have to do it alone. We’re here to provide you with accurate information, personalized care, and support every step of the way.
Have you been frequently asking people to repeat what they’ve been saying? Do you feel the need to get closer to the sound source or speaker to hear clearly? Have your family members mentioned how you turn up the TV volume higher than usual?
If this is the case, you may need to get a hearing test.
Types of Hearing Tests
Speech In Noise Test
Speech-in-noise (SIN) testing can provide insight into the health of a patient’s auditory system. It can be utilized for clinical diagnosis and testing of hearing system functional capability, providing doctors with extremely valuable information while needing minimal clinical time.
SIN testing replicates real-world background noise situations, challenging you to listen to and try to interpret speech amid noise. This type of test can be used to evaluate your hearing while experimenting with various types of hearing aids.
Pure Tone Audiometry
Pure-tone audiometry is the gold standard for establishing the kind, severity, and configuration of a patient’s hearing loss, including the percentage of conductive versus sensorineural hearing loss.
You wear earphones connected to the audiometer for this test. One ear receives pure tones of a given frequency and volume at a time. When you hear a sound, you must signal. The lowest volume required to hear each tone is documented on a graph.
Speech Audiometry
This is a test used to determine your ability to understand speech. The results of speech audiometry can be used to estimate your speech reception threshold. People with hearing loss frequently feel isolated and end up making an effort to participate in a discussion.
Through this test, we can easily come up with a treatment plan to address your hearing and communication gaps so you can get back on track and participate in family conversations, work parties, and conferences.
Bone Conduction Testing
This is a pure-tone test that assesses your inner ear’s reaction to sound. A conductor will be implanted behind your ear, sending tiny vibrations directly to the inner ear through the bone. This differs from the classic version, which sends audible noises via air.
Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR)
This form of testing is used to assess a sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) exists. ABR is also commonly used to check babies for hearing issues. Electrodes are put on your head, scalp, or earlobes. The brainwave activity will be measured, specifically how it will react to different intensities of noises.
Traditional VS Online Hearing Tests
People now have access to online hearing exams, which is quite handy because it saves the need to leave the house and travel to an audiologist’s office.
The question is, how accurate is an online hearing test? According to experts, the findings of an online hearing test may be partially accurate, but not to the point of being capable of pinpointing the level of your hearing impairments.
There’s nothing wrong with taking an online hearing test (especially if it’s free), but we recommend that you compare the findings of an online hearing test to those of a real hearing test performed by an audiologist.
Hearing Tests in Fort Wayne, IN
A hearing test can help us determine whether the hearing loss is transient or whether the nerves have already been permanently damaged.
HearCare Audiology has six audiology centers around Indiana that provide a wide selection of hearing tests and evaluations. Audiologists at HearCare Audiology Indiana are experienced in performing various hearing test procedures to assure the maximum accuracy of test findings.
Our team is here to partner with you in your journey towards better hearing health. We will work with you to develop a customized treatment plan, referring you to specialists if necessary, and provide ongoing support and service to help you with your hearing.
Book with us today and start your journey to better hearing!