Your First Hearing Center Visit - What to Expect

Aug 8
17:01

2012

Aloysius Aucoin

Aloysius Aucoin

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There are many things you will learn when you go to a hearing center. You will discover many things you did not know about your hearing as well as about yourself.

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That first hearing center visit may seem like a challenge and it may feel overwhelming. What will they tell you? What should you be worried about? There are many concerns to think about and to plan for,Your First Hearing Center Visit - What to Expect Articles but this hour or more testing period is nothing to worry about. In most cases, it is a simple way for doctors to learn more about your limited ability to hear. The first step will be to determine what options are available to you for improving your condition, if there is a condition present.

Do You Have Loss?

The ultimate goal of the first hearing center visit is to determine if you have any loss of ability to hear. The test will provide information to the doctor about what your condition is and what needs to be done to improve it, if anything. These tests are painless and usually only take a few minutes.

An audiologist will perform the test. It will start with gathering information about your medical history. This can provide some information to the doctor about why you may be experiencing some loss. For example, if you have a type of disease or condition that can lead to loss, this may be helpful. In other cases, such as those that work in loud environments, it can be clear that outside effects may be causing the condition. Provide as much information as possible.

Examination

After taking your full medical history, the next step is an overall exam of the ears. The doctors are looking at your eardrums as well as the ear canals using a device that is placed just on the outside of the ear canal. This allows the audiologist to determine if there are structural damages that are causing the problem.

Testing

From there, the next step will be a hearing test. This process looks at your ability to hear various types of sounds, including different tones and pitches. It can also involve noticing any speech signals your ears are picking up. You just need to listen for the tones and, if you hear them, raise your hand. The doctor will use various levels of tones and some of them you will not hear.

From this point, the doctor can provide more information to you about your overall ability to hear or any loss present. Often, the hearing center will have devices that can be given to you to improve your ability to hear. These hearing aids may be readily available for you. However, not everyone needs these and those that do not have a condition that can be improved with this type of device may also not be given one.