Audiology

Diagnostic audiological testing can help determine the type and degree of your hearing loss. This is vital information your audiologist will need to help create your individualized treatment plan.

Pure-Tone Testing

This type of test can determine the faintest tones you can hear at a variety of pitches. You will be asked to sit in a specially designed sound booth and wear a pair of headphones. This test enables your audiologist to check for unilateral hearing loss, which is hearing loss in just one ear.

A series of tones will be played through the headphones. Every time you hear a tone you are instructed to raise your hand or press a button. At the end of the test your results are recorded on an audiogram. This is a visual representation of how well you can hear.

The standard version of this test can be performed on children as young as five years of age. Any younger and the test must be modified to fit the child’s capability. Children two to five years of age can be tested with conditioned play audiometry. The child is trained to perform a task every time they hear a tone, such as putting a block in a box or placing a ring on a cone.

Vestibular Testing

This test is able to identify balance problems within patients. It measures a type of involuntary eye movements called nystagmus. 

These movements can be slow or fast, steady or jerky. Nystagmus causes your eyes to move from side to side or up and down, or both. It happens when the brain gets conflicting messages from your eyes and the balance system in the inner ear. These conflicting messages can cause dizziness. You can briefly get nystagmus when you move your head a certain way or look at some types of patterns. But if you get it when you don't move your head or if it lasts a long time, it may mean you have a disorder of the vestibular system.

Your vestibular system includes organs, nerves, and structures that are in your inner ear. It is your body's main center of balance. The vestibular system works together with your eyes, sense of touch, and brain. Your brain communicates with the different systems in your body to control your balance. There are three parts to this test: ocular testing, positional testing, caloric testing.

Middle Ear Testing

This category of auditory tests is used to determine how well the middle ear is working. This is especially important when testing children, as they are prone to middle ear infections. A tympanometry is an exam used to determine if there is a blockage of earwax, fluid buildup within the middle ear or a perforated eardrum. Air is gently introduced into the ear and the amount the eardrum moves is measured and recorded on a graph called a tympanogram.

Acoustic reflex measures provide another level of information to the audiologist about the location of the hearing problem. Typically, when a loud sound is heard, a muscle in the middle ear contracts. This is called an acoustic reflex. To measure the loudness level at which an acoustic reflex occurs, a probe is placed in the ear and a range of tones is played.

Auditory Brainstem Response

This test provides the audiologist with information about how well the inner ear, specifically the cochlea and auditory pathway, is working. Electrodes are placed on the head to record brain activity. Then, a series of tones are played and the brain’s response is measured.