Pure Tone Audiometry

Pure Tone Audiometry is the most common method of examination used during adult diagnostic audiology. A comprehensive test involving two steps, the evaluation can determine both your type of hearing loss and its severity.

Air Conduction Testing

The test will be carried out by a member of our expert audiology team in a sound-proof room or booth. A series of tones with varying pitches will be played through headphones or insert-earphones. These noises will start at an audible level (not too loud or low) and begin to decrease in a bid to define your minimum hearing threshold. Your hearing care specialist will ask you to indicate each time you hear a beep by pressing a button or signalling your hand. These results will be plotted on an audiogram.

Bone Conduction Testing

During this next test, the same process as above will apply. On this occasion however, tones will also be played through a bone conduction vibrator which is attached to a headband placed behind your ear. This will help identify the softest sound that can be heard when the ear is being stimulated directly. Again, these results will be plotted on an audiogram. This completed audiogram will tell us if the hearing is within normal range or in case of a hearing loss, what type and what level of hearing loss is present.

If a hearing loss is present, it may be a conductive loss (due to problems in the outer or middle ear), a sensorineural loss (due to problems in the inner ear and auditory nerve), or a mixture of both.

Depending on the results of your analysis, a member of our audiology team may recommend a hearing aid solution or advise referral to an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist, if necessary.