I am concerned about my hearing. Do I have a hearing loss?
My partner complains of a ringing sound. Could that be tinnitus?
What can I expect from a diagnostic audiology appointment?
If you experience any of the following, you should consider an in-depth audiology appointment.
- Do I need the TV louder than others in my household?
- Do I ask people to repeat?
- Do friends or family members tell me that I heard incorrectly?
- There is a family history of hearing loss – could I have the same thing?
- I have ringing in my ear, what should I do?
- I don’t think I have a hearing loss, but I want a baseline.
A diagnostic hearing test starts with an otoscopic examination:
that means looking in the ear canal and looking at the eardrum.
Next, we take a measure of middle ear function, through tympanometry. This tells us how mobile the eardrum is. Puretone hearing testing then determines your hearing thresholds, allowing us to categorize your hearing status as follows: normal, mild, moderate, severe or profound hearing loss.
The use of air conduction and bone conduction testing will allow us to make a statement of the nature of the hearing loss whether it be sensorineural, conductive or a combination.
If you experience tinnitus, our audiologist will provide you with a questionnaire to find out how severely it impacts your daily living and will find out more about the nature of the tinnitus.
After testing is complete, we provide a thorough explanation of your hearing status. We discuss how this potentially affects your listening behavior and how it might impact your life. If applicable, we may recommend that you see your family doctor, who may refer you to an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Specialist. If applicable, we offer Tinnitus management solutions. Furthermore, we may recommend that you find a local dispensing audiologist or hearing instrument practitioner to help you determine whether hearing aids are right for you, if that is applicable to you.
Start Your Journey Today
Take the first step when you schedule an appointment.
A hearing test can give you peace of mind.
