Hearing Test - What Everyone Should Know

There are many reasons why people lose their ability to listen to certain sounds. Sometimes, it's simply part of the aging process for some people. However, there are people that are more susceptible to hearing loss than others. For instance, musicians will lose their ability to understand sound quicker than people that aren't musicians. That's because exposing your ears to high level of noise really damages our ear drums over time. Explore a few other causes of such audio loss as well as find out what happens during hearing test.

Loud concerts, pumping up the sound on your headsets, or even riding a motorcycle to work every day can damage your ears. Everyone with two healthy ears is equipped to understand the spoken word as well as day-to-day sounds. Yet, when you push your ears to the limit by constantly being in environments where noise levels are extreme, you're in for trouble. You'll begin to notice that it's harder and harder to understand simple conversations and you may find yourself asking people to repeat themselves. Before things get any worse, it's best to get a hearing test from an experienced audiologist.

When you go in for your appointment, you may receive a series of tests. Sometimes, it's simply a matter of being placed in a sound-proof room and the audiologist will produce certain sounds at different levels. During this hearing test, you may only need to push a button or raise your hand when you understand a sound.

In addition, an audiologist may utilize a tiny probe that is placed in the ear in order to figure out how well your ear drums work. He or she determines this by observing the air pressure in the ear and can find out if you have an ear infection or another issue that is affecting your ability to understand sound. Also, your hearing test may go a step further in that a probe is placed in the ear again, but this time a loud sound is produced. The audiologist will observe how a muscle in your ear contracts and responds to the loud noise.

Once everything is complete, the audiologist can provide a full report of the results and help diagnose the severity of your listening problems. It could be an ear infection that's at the root of the issue. On the other hand, you could have a lesion in the ear. Whatever the results, you may be referred to an ear nose and throat doctor for further testing. Or your issue may simply be resolved with the help of a hearing aid.