5. Overview...
Involved Professionals:
n Audiologist
n Hearing Instrument Specialist
n Family Physician
n Otolaryngologist/ENT Specialist
n Speech-Language Pathologist
6. Hearing Loss
The 3rd most common health problem in
the United States
36 million Americans have hearing loss
(NIDCD)
1/3 of Americans aged 65 to 74
1/2 of Americans over the age of 75
Most hearing loss is due to:
Aging
Genetics
Noise exposure!!!
7.
8. Diagnostic Testing
Audiogram
Tone testing, Speech testing, and middle ear
testing
The goal is to determine
How well you hear
How clearly you hear speech
If there is a medical reason for hearing loss
If there is a need for some sort of intervention
9. Hearing Loss is defined by…
Degree of Loss
Normal, mild, moderate, severe, profound
Configuration of Loss
Flat, sloping, precipitous, rising, etc.
Type of Loss
Conductive
Sensorineural
Mixed
10. Other Important Factors
Onset
Prelingual (<5)
Postlingual (>5)
Deafened
Hard of hearing
Speech Recognition Ability
11. Degree of Hearing Loss (PTA in dB)
Slight – mild
21 – 40
Mild to moderate
41 - 55
Moderate
56 - 70
Severe
71 - 90
Profound
>90
23. What is sound?
Physical sense
disturbance of molecules that is propagated
through some elastic medium, like the air
Psychological sense
the act of hearing something
26. Frequency
How often an event occurs over some
period of time
When referring to sound, frequency is
defined as cycles per second
unit of measurement is the hertz (Hz)
Our human ear can detect frequencies ranging
from 20-20,000 Hz
Humans most sensitive hearing frequencies
are from 500Hz to 5000Hz
27. Intensity
The distance from the point of rest that
particles move after the onset of a sound
Also referred to as amplitude
The decibel (dB) is the most common unit
of measurement for sound intensity
The human ear can detect intensities from 0 to
140 dB SPL (sound pressure level). At 0 dB,
sounds are just barely audible, and at 140 dB,
sounds are truly painful
30. Pitch
Pitch is the subjective perception of how
“high” or “low” a sound is
Pitch is directly related to the frequency of
a sound
lower the frequency, the lower the pitch
The intensity of a sound also contributes
somewhat to our perception of pitch.
31. Loudness
Loudness is the psychological perception
of how “loud” or “soft” a sound is
Loudness is directly related to intensity
lower the intensity, the softer the sound
duration and frequency of a sound also
contributes to our perception of loudness
33. Localization
Ability to determine which direction a
sound
Requires symmetric hearing in both ears
the brain uses the arrival time at the ears and
the intensity level at each ear
It is very important for individual’s with
hearing loss in both ears to be fit with
bilateral hearing aids in order to preserve
the ability to localize to sound.
34. Masking
The ability of one sound to be “covered
up” by the presence of another sound
Masking is measured by the number of
decibels the threshold of hearing is raised
The softest level of noise which renders
the signal inaudible is referred to 0dB
effective masking level
Environmental masking
Audiometric masking
35. Upward Spread of Masking
Low frequency sounds mask or “cover up”
sounds that are of a higher frequency
36. Masking
Backward Masking
when the signal is masked by a sound that is
presented after the intended signal
Forward Masking
when the signal is masked by a frequency that
is presented immediately before the signal.
37. Audiometric Masking
Goal: to isolate the test ear and prevent
“crosstalk” between the ears
Narrowband noise
Used for puretone testing
Wideband noise
Used for speech testing
