1 The Audiogram Measurement of Hearing and Audiogram Interpretation.
HEARING WELL CLUB WHAT DOES YOUR AUDIOGRAM SAY ABOUT HEARING LOSS? SHANNON RICCI, M.A. & JANIS S....
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Transcript of HEARING WELL CLUB WHAT DOES YOUR AUDIOGRAM SAY ABOUT HEARING LOSS? SHANNON RICCI, M.A. & JANIS S....
HEARING WELL CLUB
WHAT DOES YOUR AUDIOGRAMSAY ABOUT HEARING LOSS?
SHANNON RICCI, M.A. & JANIS S. UFFENHEIMER, AU. D.NEWPORT AUDIOLOGY/CONNECT HEARING
What is hearing loss?
The ear is Made up of 3 parts
A. The outer ear (ear canal and pinna)
B. The middle ear (eardrum and ossicles)
C. The inner ear (Cochlea or hearing nerve)
Hearing loss is the result of damage to any of these ear parts
Conductive vs. Sensorineural hearing
lossConductive Loss:• Problem in the outer or
middle ear• Causes:
• Excessive earwax, ear infection or fluid in the middle ear
• Stiffness in the bones of the middle ear (Otosclerosis)
• Conductive hearing loss is treated by a physician
Sensorineural Loss (Nerve Deafness)•The hearing nerve is damaged and cannot send signals to the brain•Causes:
• Noise exposure• Hereditary factors• Decline in hearing with age• Sensorineural loss cannot be
corrected with medicine or surgery
•Hearing aids can be very helpful
SENSORINEURAL HEARING LOSS
AUDITORY SYSTEM
AUDIOGRAMHow to Read an Audiogram:•A pure tone audiogram is a graph •the pitches (frequencies) across the top •loudness (intensity) down the side. •This graph registers the loudness at which different sounds need to be in order to be heard.• An audiologist fills in the graph using symbols to mark the points at which sounds begin to be heard.
AUDIOGRAM SYMBOLS
• Symbols:• Left ear measurements. Usually
marked blue ink: X or BOX.• Right ear measurements. Usually
marked in red ink: O or Triangle• > < or ] [ To mark bone
conduction thresholds.
HEARING LOSS CONFIGURATIONS
• SLOPING• GRADUAL
• SKI SLOPE
• FLAT• REVERSE SLOPE• UNILATERAL
•
COOKIE BITE HEARING LOSS
DEGREE OF HEARING LOSS•Mild Loss: May hear some
speech sounds but soft
sounds hard to hear
normal level
• Moderate Loss: May hear
Almost no speech when a person
Is talking at a normal level
And only some loud sounds
•Severe Loss: Will hear no speech
when a person is talking at a
normal level and only
some loud sounds
• Profound Hearing loss: Will
not hear any speech and
only hear and maybe only
feel some very very loud sounds
Other Terms
• Unilateral Hearing Loss: Have a hearing loss in only one ear; Will have more difficulty in background noise and finding the source of a sound
• Symmetrical or Asymmetrical: Hearing loss is the same in both (symmerical) Hearing loss is different for each ear (asymmetrical)
• Progressive or Sudden: Hearing loss worsens over time (progressive); Hearing loss happens quickly (sudden- See your ENT immediately)
• Fluctuating or Stable: Hearing Loss gets better or worse (fluctuating) or stays the same (stable)
• Word Recognition: A measure of how well you can hear and recognize speech when presented at a comfortable listening level. People with the same degree/configuration of hearing loss may have different word recognition abilities and thus have different abilities with amplification
How hearing loss affects speech understanding
• Hearing Loss is documented on an Audiogram
• Most people with sensorineural hearing loss have difficulty hearing high-pitched sounds
• Speech understanding requires hearing the soft, high-pitch sounds
Vowels = loudness
Consonants = Speech intelligibility
Audible
Not Audible
Most people with hearing loss have difficulty with high pitch sounds, like “s”, “ch”, “th”, “f” and “z”
“Seed”“Deed”“Greed”“Need”
WHEN DO I NEED A HEARING AID?
•No outward visible signsusually occurs gradually, and your close Friends and family members may notice it before you do. • You don’t always know what you missed, because you didn’t hear it. •Sometimes, things may sound loud enough, but not be clear. • At first, you may only have a problem on the telephone, or with television, or only in background noise. •You may have the perception that you’re hearing fine, if other people would just stop mumbling. •Link to dementia, if you don’t use it, you’ll lose it
What should I do first?• Speak with your family members and close friends to see
how they feel your hearing is; Don’t let them continue to be your living hearing aid
• If you think you have a hearing loss, you probably do• Get your hearing tested
• Research re: “use it or lose it” principle, • In order to be fully engaged in life, you need to be
fully engaged everywhere
Questions?
THANK YOU!
Newport Audiology/Connect Hearing 800-675-5485