Types Of Hearing Tests And The Stages Of Hearing Loss
You may notice as you age you struggle to hear more than you used to. Age is a common factor in hearing loss. There are plenty of other factors that can go into losing your hearing, so don't be discouraged if it's getting harder for you to hear properly. There are a few types of hearing tests you can take to test your hearing.
Hearing Loss
Age is a common factor in hearing loss, but there are many other things that could be causing your hearing to worsen.
Other factors can include:
- Head trauma
- Infection
- Loud noise
- Genetics
- Ototoxicity
Types of Hearing Tests
Taking a hearing test will help you identify which stage of hearing loss you are in.
Pure-Tone Testing
To complete this test, you will be given headphones to wear. Your doctor will send sounds through the headphones for you to raise your hand when/if you hear it. This is to test what pitches and volumes you can hear.
Speech Testing
This test can be conducted in a quiet or loud environment. This test is used to test how well you can understand and identify speech in those environments, and at which volume.
Bone-Conduction Testing
This test is used to figure out what type of hearing loss you have by sending vibrations to the inner ear and studying its reaction.
Acoustic Reflex Testing
If your doctor is trying to pinpoint the location of your hearing loss, this is the test they would use. This test measures the muscle contractions of the middle ear when you are presented with loud noises.
Stages of Hearing Loss
There are four stages of hearing loss. After completing a hearing test, your doctor will be able to place you in one of these stages.
Mild Hearing Loss
Mild hearing loss isn't a very advanced loss. With mild hearing loss, you would be able to participate in conversations as normal, except when you're in loud environments. With this stage of hearing loss, you may struggle to hear soft noises such as a dripping faucet, the wind, or a ticking clock.
Moderate Hearing Loss
If you have moderate hearing loss, it may be difficult for you to follow a conversation properly. You may also be unable to hear things like an alarm clock, telephone ringing, or doorbell ringing. It's possible to be asked to wear a hearing aid with moderate hearing loss.
Severe Hearing Loss
With severe hearing loss, it will become close to impossible to follow a conversation without the help of a hearing aid. However, it may be hard to correct hearing loss with a hearing aid at this stage.
Profound Hearing Loss
Hearing loss at this stage makes it almost impossible to hear anything. You may not even be able to hear loud noises, such as smoke or fire alarms, ambulances, or planes and trains. At this stage, some people resort to sign language or reading lips to effectively communicate with those around them.
Contact a provider of hearing tests such as Accurate Hearing Technology Inc to learn more.
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