Hearing Test

Why should you have a Hearing Test?

As one of our five senses the ability to hear plays an enormously important part of our lives. Our hearing health can influence our family, social and work lives. During our lives as many as one in six of us may suffer hearing loss to some extent. Here at Richmond Hearing we want you to have access to the best advice available. Our audiologists will assist you in making an informed choice about the best way forward to get the most from your hearing. Your ability to enjoy a good social wellbeing is important to us so by assessing and making available to you all Hearing Aids on the market we can truly find the best fit for you.

When is it time to book a test?

As soon as you become concerned about your hearing it is advisable to book a test as soon as possible, this includes;
If you may have noticed, or had others point out to you, that you are not following conversation as well as you perhaps used to.
If you have had a hearing test previously and whilst the advice at that time was no action, you are concerned of further declining in your ability to hear.
If you have previously been fitted with a hearing aid system and are unhappy with their performance, appearance or their fit (or a combination of all of these).
If you have had a hearing system fitted previously but want to know if there are now more suited systems for your needs.
If you have previously been offered Hearing Aids and decided against them.
If you have worked in a loud environment and are worried about damage to your hearing.
If you have a family history of hearing issues.

Please note that if you suffer a sudden loss of hearing contact your GP or Richmond Hearing to receive advice as a matter of urgency.

A Hearing Test at Richmond Hearing Centre can take just 60-90 minutes depending on your results. This appointment includes your hearing test as well as our audiologist explaining your results to you and discussing your options including if you would like to trial Hearing Aids. If you have any concerns about your hearing, why not book a free test today to give yourself peace of mind?

The Hearing Test

Richmond Hearing Audiologists use the Pure Tone Audiogram (PTA).

Pure tone audiometry is the hearing test used to identify hearing threshold levels to generate the information relevant to the degree, type and configuration of a hearing loss and provide the basis for diagnosis and management of your loss.

The hearing test consists of;

Taking your Hearing History

One of our trained staff will ask you questions about your hearing history. This includes whether you have Hearing Aids currently, or whether you have been previously diagnosed with any issues relating to your ears.

An Ear Examination

There are other factors which could be leading to your hearing loss that the audiologist will need to rule out before giving you a Hearing Test. To gain more information about what may be causing your loss the audiologist will look at your ear using an otoscope. The otoscope will magnify your inner ear and allow the audiologist to check for signs of impacted wax or damage to your ear canal or eardrum. 

The Pure Tone Audiogram  

For the Pure Tone Audiogram our audiologists will give you a pair of headphones through which they will play sounds at a range of frequencies. Some of these sounds will be loud, some will be quiet, but it is important that during your process you acknowledge all sounds you hear as this will affect the measurements. To acknowledge a sound you will be asked to say ‘yes’ or press a button when those sounds are audible to you.

The pure tone audiometry uses frequency specific pure tones to give environment specific responses to better understand the configuration of a hearing loss. Pure tone audiometry uses both air and bone conduction audiometry to also help identify the type of hearing loss.

The Hearing Test will take place in a soundproof booth but can also take place in a quiet home setting with use of headphones if needed.

Your Results

After the test is completed the audiologist will go through your results with you. A full explanation of your hearing loss will be given to you along with your options going forward.

Types of loss include; conductive, where the physical part of the sound path is affected, sensorineural if the problem occurs in how the sound is processed or interpreted.
This is not an exhaustive list, but the most common ones for adults include;
Presbycusis (aging effects)
Autoimmune inner ear diseases
Exposure to loud noises
Glue ear (a temporary and reversible condition)
Head trauma
Hereditary issues
Malformation of any part of the ear
Meneire’s disease
Otosclerosis
A side effect of drugs such as chemotherapy
The result of virus or disease
Wax

Your results may be defined to you as you suffering from ‘minimal’ or ‘mild’ to ‘profound’ loss. These are common categories of hearing loss classifications and to give you an idea of what those terms mean we have here the figures your loss shall be measured against.

The Audiogram results will give a reading of one of the following;
10 to 15 dB. Normal Hearing.
16 to 25 dB. Minimal Hearing Loss.
26 to 40 dB. Mild Hearing Loss.
41 to 55 dB. Moderate Hearing Loss.
56 to 70 dB. Moderately Severe Hearing Loss.
71 to 90 dB. Severe Hearing Loss.
91 + dB. Profound Hearing Loss.

Richmond Hearing Centre will always provide you with professional advice and support.

We will allow you a 30 Day Trial Period to provide you with the confidence that the aids will meet your needs and expectation.  Being an independent Hearing Aid Company we are able to access all manufacturers to ensure you are provided with the best Hearing Aid for your loss.