During Hearing Health Awareness Month, the team at House of Hearing wants to give communities across Utah plenty of insights about how to improve their hearing.
While it can take years for someone to address an issue, once they come to the center, the process always begins with a comprehensive hearing assessment.
For many people, this sounds like a scary process, just because it’s not often discussed.
But actually, it’s a quick and painless procedure, similar to an eye examination, providing rapid results about your particular condition.
Want to find out more? This is what happens at a hearing assessment.
A warm welcome
A comprehensive assessment always begins with a chat about your particular concerns and your family medical record, in relation to hearing loss.
This is an essential first step, where your doctor of audiology will begin to analyze what might be causing your problem.
A condition may be hereditary and can lead to a range of symptoms affecting not just your hearing but also your physical and social experiences.
Once they have a complete understanding of this contextual information, then they can move the assessment one step further.
A detailed inspection
The next phase of the process is the practical inspection.
The main reason for this is so that your doctor of audiology can understand the health of your auditory system and highlight any obvious issues.
They’ll look down inside your inner and outer ear, so they can be sure you don’t have any fluid behind the eardrum or swelling, suggestive of an ear infection.
They’ll also consider whether you may have wax build-up, which in some cases can be the cause of someone’s hearing loss.
The hearing test
After this process is complete, they’ll assess your hearing capacity, which takes place via a formal test lasting roughly twenty minutes.
In the hearing booth, you’ll put on a pair of headphones and listen to sounds at different volume levels, with your doctor of audiology closely monitoring you at each stage.
Additionally, you’ll undergo a speech test, so your doctor of audiology can understand how well you understand consonants and vowel sounds.
Collectively, these checks will demonstrate how your brain is processing sounds, which is critical to understand.
The final stage
Once you’ve completed all these steps, your doctor of audiology will bring you back to their office to discuss the results.
If you’re a candidate for hearing aids, they’ll spend time discussing what might be the best options and show you how different models work.
They’ll also provide those who would benefit from medical assistance with a referral to one of Hearing at Home’s excellent ENT physicians.
This means you’ll have complete peace of mind going forward.
Are you concerned about a hearing loss or know someone who is? Contact the friendly team at House of Hearing, and they’ll get you the help you need fast!
