Hearing testing plays an important role in maintaining your overall health. Any amount of hearing loss can affect your mental and physical well-being and significantly impact your quality of life. As such, it’s important to detect changes in hearing and seek out treatment as early as possible. If you’ve never experienced this kind of exam before, it can help you feel more comfortable to know what will happen before arriving at your appointment.

What Happens When You Get Your Hearing Tested?

1. Consultation

Before any hearing testing is done, you’ll be asked to provide your medical history, medications you’re taking, and any hearing issues you’ve noticed.

It’s likely your provider will also want to know about any family history of hearing loss and aspects of your lifestyle that could contribute to hearing problems, such as consistent exposure to loud noises at work. This information can help determine a diagnosis and the best solution.

2. Visual Inspection

Next, your provider will physically examine your ears with a handheld device that allows them to look deep within the ear canal.

They’ll be looking for any visible abnormalities or obstruction that could affect your hearing, such as an infection, earwax buildup, perforations in the eardrum, and malformations. If anything is noted, they can make a recommendation for treatment.

3. Audiology Test

Once the exam is complete, your hearing testing will begin. This involves a series of different tests that check what frequencies and volumes you can distinguish, your comprehension accuracy, and your acoustic reflexes.

The exam is non-invasive and typically performed in a soundproof room where you’ll wear headphones. You’ll be asked to respond in a certain manner according to what you hear.

4. Review Results

After the test is done, your results will be available right away. Your provider will go over these with you and explain how each of your ears is functioning and if there are challenges to be aware of. Should they assess considerable hearing loss, they’ll suggest possible treatments and lifestyle changes that can help you hear better.  

If you’re concerned you may have hearing loss, trust Heartland Better Hearing Inc to help you decide what your next step should be. They use advanced technology to provide accurate hearing test results and customized treatment options. For more than 20 years, they’ve been dedicated to giving Elizabethtown, KY, residents access to a large inventory of high-quality hearing instruments made for comfort and convenience. Call (270) 735-9352 to schedule an appointment, or visit them online to learn more about the products they carry.