Determining hearing loss is more technical than it may at first seem. If you’re dealing with hearing loss, you can most likely hear certain things clearly at a lower volume, but not others. The majority of letters may sound clear at high or low volumes but others, like “s” and “b” could get lost. When you learn how to read your hearing test it becomes clearer why your hearing seems “inconsistent”. Because simply turning up the volume isn’t enough.
When I get my audiogram, how do I decipher it?
Hearing professionals will be able to determine the condition of your hearing by utilizing this type of hearing test. It would be terrific if it looked as simple as a scale from one to ten, but sadly, that isn’t the situation.
Instead, it’s written on a graph, which is why many people find it perplexing. But if you know what you’re looking at, you too can interpret the results of your audiogram.
Deciphering the volume portion of your audiogram
Along the left side of the graph is the volume in Decibels (dB) from 0 (silent) to about 120 (thunder). The higher the number, the louder the sound must be for you to be able to hear it.
If you’re unable to hear any sound until it is about 30 dB then you have mild hearing loss which is a loss of volume between 26 and 45 dB. You’re dealing with moderate hearing loss if your hearing begins at 45-65 dB. If you begin hearing at between 66 and 85 dB then it indicates you’re dealing with severe hearing loss. If you can’t hear sound until it reaches 90 dB or more (louder than the volume of a running lawnmower), it means that you have profound hearing loss.
The frequency portion of your hearing test
You hear other things besides volume too. You hear sound at varied frequencies, commonly known as pitches in music. Different types of sounds, including letters of the alphabet, are distinguished by frequency or pitch.
Frequencies that a human ear can hear, ranging from 125 (lower than a bullfrog) to 8000 (higher than a cricket), are generally listed along the bottom of the graph.
We will check how well you’re able to hear frequencies in between and can then plot them on the graph.
So if you have hearing loss in the higher frequencies, you may need the volume of high frequency sounds to be as high as 60 dB (the volume of somebody talking at a raised volume). The volume that the sound must reach for you to hear each frequency varies and will be plotted on the graph.
Is it significant to track both frequency and volume?
Now that you understand how to interpret your audiogram, let’s have a look at what those results might mean for you in real life. High-frequency hearing loss, which is a very common type of loss would make it harder to hear or comprehend:
- Music
- “F”, “H”, “S”
- Higher pitched voices like women and children tend to have
- Beeps, dings, and timers
- Whispers, even if hearing volume is good
- Birds
Certain specific frequencies may be more difficult for someone with high frequency hearing loss to hear, even in the higher frequency range.
Inside of the inner ear little stereocilia (hair-like cells) vibrate in response to sound waves. If the cells that detect a specific frequency become damaged and eventually die, you will lose your ability to hear that frequency at lower volumes. You will entirely lose your ability to hear any frequencies that have lost all of the related hair cells.
This kind of hearing loss can make some communications with loved ones really aggravating. Your family members may think they have to yell at you in order to be heard even though you only have trouble hearing certain frequencies. On top of that, those with this kind of hearing impairment find background noise overpowers louder, higher-frequency sounds such as your sister talking to you in a restaurant.
Hearing solutions can be individualized by a hearing professional by utilizing a hearing test
When we are able to recognize which frequencies you don’t hear well or at all, we can program a hearing aid to meet each ear’s distinct hearing profile. Contemporary hearing aids have the ability to recognize precisely what frequencies go into the microphone. It can then make that frequency louder so you can hear it. Or it can utilize its frequency compression feature to adjust the frequency to one you can hear better. Additionally, they can improve your ability to process background noise.
Modern hearing aids are fine tuned to address your particular hearing needs instead of just turning up the volume on all frequencies, which creates a smoother listening experience.
Make an appointment for a hearing test today if you think you may be suffering from hearing loss. We can help.