Audiology Pure Tone Evaluation

Excerpt

Hearing loss is a widespread chronic condition affecting over 25 million people aged 12 years or older in the United States. It may affect 1 in 5 children, temporarily or permanently, by the age of 18. Despite the high prevalence of hearing loss, many adults do not receive appropriate or timely evaluation and treatment for their hearing concerns. Appropriate treatment for hearing loss depends greatly on the pathophysiology and the severity of the condition, and a detailed hearing assessment provides the healthcare team with the necessary diagnostic information to guide treatment. While Weber and Rinne tuning fork tests are useful for clinical screening and identifying the type of hearing loss, they may miss nuances such as mild hearing loss, bilateral hearing loss, or mixed conductive and sensorineural hearing loss. Pure-tone (isolated frequency) audiometry evaluation over the range of frequencies important for everyday listening can determine the degree, configuration, and type of hearing loss in a manner detailed enough to assist the healthcare team in determining the etiology and prognosis for the hearing loss as well as the optimal treatment strategy.