After years of nagging, begging and pleading from your family and friends, you finally picked up the phone and scheduled an appointment with your Green Valley audiologist. Now that the visit is coming up, it is time to prepare. Get your insurance cards together and organize your thoughts.
Below are the questions you should be prepared to ask your Green Valley audiologist at your new patient appointment.
What Hearing Tests Are Needed?
There are a number of tests your Green Valley audiologist may order to assess your hearing abilities. It is important to understand which tests your doctor wants to perform and why.
The most common tests include:
- Pure Tone Testing
- Bone Conduction Testing
- Speech Testing
- Tympanometry
- Acoustic Reflex Testing
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR)
- Otoacoustic Emissions
What Type of Hearing Loss Do I Have?
Understanding your type and degree of hearing loss is extremely important as it directly relates to the treatment you will receive.
Conductive hearing loss is caused by:
- Ear infection
- Fluid in the ears
- Malformation or abnormalities of the outer or middle ear
- Impacted earwax
- Foreign object in the ear
- Allergies
- Perforated eardrum
- Otosclerosis
- Benign tumors
This type of hearing loss is typically treated with medications or surgery.
Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by:
- Noise exposure
- Head trauma
- Aging (presbycusis)
- Viral disease
- Autoimmune ear disease
- Meniere’s disease
- Malformation or abnormality of the inner ear
- Otosclerosis
- Tumors
This type of hearing loss is typically treated with hearing aids.
Is My Hearing Loss The Same in Both Ears?
Much like your eyesight can be different in each eye, your hearing loss often varies between ears. Once you understand that, it will help determine if you need one or two hearing aids. While the need for two hearings aids depends on the severity of each side’s hearing loss, Green Valley experts agree that it is easier for your brain to interpret sounds when amplified with a hearing aid in both ears.
In addition, Better Hearing Institute estimates that 90 percent of all patients who need hearings aid need them in both ears.
What Type of Hearing Aid Is Best?
Hearing aids come in a number of styles, some of which may be better suited for your hearing loss than others. Picking one can be daunting but never fear, this is where your Green Valley audiologist comes in. They will work with you to determine your listening lifestyle, amplification needs, personal aesthetic and budget. This information is then used to find the right device for you.
What Happens After I Buy The Hearing Aid?
Once the hearing aid is purchased, you will schedule a fitting appointment. This visit is when your Green Valley audiologist will fit and program the hearing aid to meet your exact degree of hearing loss.
Before you leave, your next few follow-up visits will also be scheduled. These visits are required to fine tune the device and ensure everything is working as it should. Periodic clean-and-check appoints are also recommended to help extend the life of your hearing aid.
These are just a few of the questions you should ask your audiologist. Once you feel more comfortable with the process, the whole thing will seem less daunting.
Contact your Green Valley audiologist today to schedule an appointment and get started.