Comprehensive Hearing Assessments
Our comprehensive hearing assessments go beyond a simple beep test to measure how well you hear tones, understand speech, and process sound in different settings. Your provider will walk you through the results in plain language and recommend a care plan that fits your hearing and lifestyle.
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A Comprehensive Hearing Assessment Is Your First Step on The Journey to Better Hearing
The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts a doubling of hearing loss cases over the next 30 years, which means regular hearing assessments should become a critical part of monitoring your health. As your hearing experts across southern Connecticut, with clinic locations in Hamden, Branford and Norwalk, we are perfectly positioned to help you start your journey to better hearing.
Early detection of hearing loss allows for the most effective treatment as you start to re-engage with the sounds of your world.
What Happens During Your Hearing Assessment?
There are four main parts included in a hearing assessment, which is the first step on your journey to better hearing.
An Initial Conversation About You
Along with having a genuine interest in our patients as individuals, we have this initial conversation to address any concerns or questions you might have about hearing loss, including any early signs you experienced prior to your visit, such as difficulty communicating with others, a ringing sound in your ears, a feeling of stuffiness or fullness in your ears and other issues.
We will ask some questions about your medical history, medications you are taking, work and social activities in which you participate, experiences with hearing loss in your family, previous or existing balance-related issues and if you are experiencing difficulty tolerating any environmental sounds.
A Physical Examination of Your Ears
Next, your audiologist will physically examine your ears to look for damage to the structures of the ear or blockages in the ear canal.
Many patients who are experiencing hearing challenges discover that their condition is not permanent but caused by an obstruction in the ear canal, such as inflammation, a growth, a bug, earwax or a bit of fluff—all of which are easily corrected, resolving your hearing difficulties.
Hearing Tests
Typical hearing tests include presenting a series of tones and speech tests that measure your ability to understand words in quiet and in noise, which involves seating you in a soundproof booth with headphones over your ears. Your audiologist will measure your response to the tones or spoken words at different frequencies (pitches) and volume levels to establish what you can and cannot hear.
We will also carry out a bone-conduction test, which uses a different type of headset to bypass the conductive structures of the hearing pathway and stimulate a response in the inner ear. This test helps determine whether your hearing loss is conductive (middle ear-related) or sensorineural (inner ear-related).
To measure how the structures of the middle ear and the eardrum respond to sound, your audiologist may also conduct a tympanometry test. The results from this test will identify hearing loss associated with damage to these components.
Additional tests to further pinpoint the source and severity of your hearing loss may be called for in some cases.
A Review of Your Results
Our results are available as soon as we complete your hearing test, allowing us to review them during the same office visit.
Because we believe in educating our patients rather than just ordering a service, your hearing expert will place your printed test results in front of you and explain what your results mean.
If further support is necessary, your audiologist will discuss the various options, which may include prescription hearing aids, surgical procedures, adjustments to medication, monitoring for ototoxic medications, tinnitus management or other suitable options.
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The Importance of Scheduling a Hearing Assessment
Because it is the first step in identifying the type and severity of hearing loss to customize a treatment plan or preventive measures, scheduling a hearing assessment is a critical step in receiving better hearing care. Even when a measurable hearing loss is not detected during a hearing assessment, the results establish a baseline against which future deterioration can be measured.
Take the first step on the journey to better hearing and a healthier life by scheduling a hearing assessment today.
What Does an Audiologist Measure?
A comprehensive hearing assessment uses several quick, painless tests to look at different parts of your hearing, from your eardrum to how your brain understands speech. Together, these results help your audiologist pinpoint what’s affecting your hearing and recommend the right care for you.
How your ears respond to loud sounds
The quietest sound you can hear at different pitches
How well you can hear speech
A hearing loss treatment plan is a personalized approach to managing and improving your hearing health. It includes a combination of therapies, hearing devices, lifestyle adjustments, and strategies to improve communication.
A personalized treatment plan is essential because hearing loss affects everyone differently. By tailoring the treatment to your specific needs and lifestyle, we can ensure the most effective strategies are used to improve your hearing and communication abilities.
If you have noticed changes in your hearing, it’s important to schedule a hearing assessment. If the assessment confirms hearing loss, our hearing specialists will create a personalized treatment plan tailored to your specific needs.
A comprehensive treatment plan can include a combination of hearing aids, assistive listening devices, auditory training, tinnitus management, lifestyle changes, and communication strategies. The components vary based on individual needs.
Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Hearing Loss Treatment Plans
If you’re exploring your options for hearing loss management, you probably have questions about what treatment might involve. This section answers the most common concerns.
Explore the Benefits of a Hearing Test
If you think you’re experiencing hearing loss, you might be wondering where to begin in terms of treatment. Though it can feel overwhelming, our audiologists can connect you with resources to gain back some of what you’ve lost. It all starts with a hearing test.
How Does a Hearing Test Work?
In a sound-proof room, you will wear headphones connected to a device that sends noise to one ear at a time. The audiologist will ask you to press a button or raise your hand whenever you hear a sound.
There are no risks associated with the test, and you can typically receive your results the same day.
Why Seek Treatment for Hearing Loss?
Meeting with an audiologist and determining the best course of action has many benefits. A few of them are:
- Improved physical and mental health
- Better relationships with family and friends
- Increased connection to the world around you
Improved Physical and Mental Health
Treating hearing loss can have a variety of other positive side effects on your health.
- Hearing aids decrease listening (related) fatigue.
- Research indicates a two to three times increased risk of falls in older adults, with even mild untreated hearing loss.
- Hearing aid use can improve working memory performance in adults, compared to not using hearing aids.
- Adults with untreated hearing loss are more likely to report emotional loneliness/a lack of perceived emotional support.
- Wearing hearing aids improves social engagement/activity amongst adults with hearing loss.
Better Relationships with Family and Friends
If you find yourself in arguments about the television volume or who said what, treating hearing loss with hearing aids will likely resolve these tensions. With help from an audiologist, you’ll be able to better understand what the people in your life are saying.
Increased Connection to the World Around You
Imagine hearing birds chirping outside, the pop of a bottle being opened in the kitchen or laughter from your children. Seeking treatment from an audiologist can help sounds big and small be part of your daily life.
Take That Next Step
The results of your hearing test, shown on an audiogram, will determine the course of action for your treatment plan. Just like people, each treatment plan is unique, and so the next steps might vary from patient to patient.
Though hearing aids are the most common treatment, each device’s technology and style are different. Your audiologist will work with you to find the model that works best for you, fit them and provide ongoing support.
