Similar to most medical appointments, your hearing consultation appointment starts with an intake process. This includes completing paperwork as well as discussing your hearing health. We’ll ask questions about your hearing health history, symptoms you’ve been experiencing, concerns you have, and lifestyle factors that impact your hearing health - what you do for work, hobbies, social life, exercise, etc. This information helps us learn more about your hearing health and factors that could be potentially contributing to any symptoms you are experiencing.

Next, we’ll inspect your ears using an otoscope - an instrument with a flashlight that is designed to examine the ears. This allows us to check for things that can be contributing to hearing challenges and other symptoms including earwax accumulation, growths or other abnormalities, ear infections, etc. These factors can obstruct sound, preventing soundwaves from being fully absorbed and traveling through the ear canal to reach the inner ear. We’ll remove any earwax if necessary before proceeding to the hearing test.

There are a few types of hearing tests used to comprehensively assess hearing ability. This includes:

• Pure Tone audiometry: this is the most common hearing test. It involves wearing headphones in a soundproof room or booth while tones are played at different frequencies. You will be asked to indicate what you can hear by raising your hand or pressing a button. This will let us know the softest sounds you can hear, identifying your hearing thresholds.
• Speech Audiometry: this test measures hearing capacities using speech rather than sounds. It involves playing speech - words audibly comminuted - at different volumes. This test analyzes the types of sounds or voices that may be difficult for you to hear which is particularly important to know for conversations.
• Tympanometry: This test assesses the eardrum response to changes in air pressure and sound stimuli. This measures the ear’s sensitivity which is especially useful for people who may have experienced one-time exposure to really loud noise.

We will thoroughly discuss your results with you after your test. Results for pure tone and speech audiometry testing are captured in real-time on an audiogram. An audiogram is a chart that visually represents your hearing capacity in each ear. We will take the time to review your hearing challenges to hear, the degree of hearing loss you are experiencing, and the types of sounds and speech that may be more challenging for you to hear and process. This is a great opportunity for you to ask questions and discuss treatment options. Depending on your results, we may recommend specific hearing aid options that can best meet your needs.

If you select a hearing aid that is in the ear style, we will take molds of your ear to ensure a perfect and comfortable fit. We will schedule a follow-up appointment for your hearing aid fitting. During this appointment, you will receive your hearing aid and learn everything about it. This includes how to use your device, maintain it effectively, and common troubleshooting tips. We will also program your hearing aid with the settings that will support your specific needs. This appointment is a great time to ask any additional questions you may have about your hearing health and also your hearing aids.