Hearing Test

So What Happens During a Hearing Test Anyway?

When you arrive for your exam at Helton Hearing Care, you will be greeted by our patient care coordinator and asked to fill out several forms, including those that record your personal information, medical history and verify your insurance. You will also have to read and acknowledge a Notice of Privacy as mandated by law.

As your exam begins, your audiologist will review your personal information with you and will ask you some questions that are designed to discover the specific types of environments in which you may be experiencing some difficulty in hearing.

Next, the audiologist will look into your ears by using an otoscope. This instrument is used to see the ear canal and the ear drum and whether or not there is ear wax obstructing the canal. Sometimes the audiologist will have a video otoscope so you can see inside your ear as well.

At Helton Hearing Care, hearing test is conducted in a soundproof booth, located in a soundproof testing suite. The process of testing is painless, comfortable and safe. The tests are performed using a computerized audiometer. The audiologist will place headphones that are connected to an audiometer over your ears. During the tests, a series of tones of different pitches, as well as speech signals are presented to each ear through headphones. You will be asked to respond to the signals by either pushing a button, raising your hand or in the case of speech signals, repeating what you heard. You will be asked to respond to the lowest level that you can hear which determines your hearing thresholds. Thresholds for each pitch and ear are plotted on a graph called an audiogram.

Further tests may be conducted during the hearing test. Your ability to understand words or sentences at different volume levels may be assessed to determine how clearly you hear speech. Your middle ear function may also be assessed by a test called tympanometry.

Following the tests, the audiologist will review the results with you and provide further recommendations, including treatment solutions.

Call today to schedule an appointment for your hearing test!
(406) 586-0914