Hearing Evaluations And Testing
Numerous studies show that people with hearing loss benefit from early identification.
It is recommended that you get regular dental and vision checkups, so your hearing should be evaluated annually to ensure the health of your ears.
The team at Sierra Nevada Hearing Aid Center encourages everyone to complete a thorough hearing evaluation, even if you don’t currently have any symptoms.
During your hearing evaluation , we will:
- Discuss your medical history.
- Talk about your current lifestyle to get a better understanding of how hearing loss is impacting your daily life.
- Use state-of-the-art equipment so we can determine your current hearing ability.
Participating in a hearing test is easy and completely painless. We’ll gain a better understanding of the volumes and frequencies you can hear as well as how well you understand the speech of others. If you do have hearing loss, it’s our goal to provide you with comprehensive information so that you can decide which course of treatment is right for you.
Hearing Evaluations are Crucial for Long-Term Hearing Health
Along with regular dental and vision checkups, your hearing should be evaluated annually to ensure the health of your ears.
You could have an impairment and not even know it. Over time, these conditions can get worse and can impact your ability to enjoy your day to day life. Thankfully, the team at Sierra Nevada Hearing Aid Center performs comprehensive hearing evaluations and can help you on the road to better hearing health.
Most people don’t realize how important a hearing evaluation can be, both for preserving your natural hearing ability and for uncovering any hearing impairments that you may have. With our comprehensive hearing evaluations, that time is spent learning about your hearing ability and making plans to improve it.
What is Hearing Loss?
Hearing loss is a common issue caused by age, noise, disease, and heredity that can hinder a person’s ability to hear sounds. Hearing loss affects about one-third of individuals between the ages of 65 and 75 in the United States and only increases with age. Contact us today at (775) 882-3277 to discuss your hearing loss options.
What Are the Common Types of Hearing Loss?
The three types of hearing loss are defined as:
Conductive: Problems with the outer or middle ear
Sensorineural: Problems with the inner ear
Mixed: A combination of problems with the outer, middle, and inner ear
In most cases, the damages causing hearing loss are irreversible. However, it is imperative that you seek medical treatment to stop the negative impact on your health and take steps to improve the way you hear. Learn more about the types of hearing loss.
What Are Hearing Loss Symptoms?
Signs and symptoms of hearing loss can include:
- Muffling of sounds
- Trouble understanding words
- Ringing in the ears
- Sensitivity to sound
- Withdrawal from social settings
What Are Common Causes of Hearing Loss?
The most common causes of hearing loss include:
- Inner ear damage: Things such as aging or loud noises can result in damage and change of the inner ear, which causes sounds to become muffled.
- Earwax buildup: A buildup of earwax can eventually block the ear canal and make hearing difficult.
- Abnormal growths or tumors: The presence of these growths and tumors in the outer or middle ear can result in complications with hearing.
- Ruptured eardrum: Any significant trauma to the eardrum such as a loud noise, change in pressure, or penetration can cause the eardrum to rupture.
Other causes of hearing loss include:
- Malformation of the ear
- Ear infection
- Allergies
- Virus or disease
- Head trauma
- Heredity
Our Treatment
No matter the type of hearing loss you are suffering from, Sierra Nevada Hearing Aid Center is here to help you find the best course of action to improve your hearing. We offer the latest hearing aid technology to improve your quality of life.
Our hearing aids work with a tiny microphone to pick up sound, a computer chip to amplify the sound, and a speaker to send a signal to your ear to help you hear better overall. The types of hearing aids we offer include:
- Completely-in-the-canal
- In-the-canal
- Full shell in-the-ear
- Behind-the-ear
- Receiver-in-the-canal
Our services include consultation, hearing aid fitting, and follow-up care to ensure we are with you for the entire journey. Schedule a consultation to hear more about the best treatment for you.
No matter the type of hearing loss you are suffering from, Sierra Nevada Hearing Aid Center is here to help you find the best course of action to improve your hearing. We offer the latest hearing aid technology to improve your quality of life. Learn more about hearing loss treatments.
Book a Consultation
To book a hearing aid consultation or to see if our team can help you find the best way to improve your hearing while wearing a face mask, please give us a call at (775) 882-3277 to schedule an appointment at one of our three locations.
Hearing Loss in One Ear Versus Hearing Loss in Both Ears
Hearing loss doesn’t always affect both ears. Sometimes, you can have hearing loss in one ear; this is also known as unilateral hearing loss or unilateral deafness. But hearing loss in one ear or both ears can happen due to a variety of reasons, such as:
- Aging
- Chronic ear infections
- The use of particular drugs
- Certain infectious diseases
- Exposure to excessive noise
- Genetic causes
- Complications at birth
Some of these causes are reversable but some are due to natural processes (like aging). If you have hearing loss in one ear, you could be a candidate for a variety of treatments or a single hearing aid. Hearing loss in both ears may necessitate two hearing aids, but it really depends on your evaluation and specific condition.
Our hearing evaluations are designed to diagnose exactly which part of your ear isn’t functioning and thus allows us to create the most appropriate treatment plan for your needs.
According to the World Health Organization, around 466 million people worldwide have some form of hearing loss and 34 million of those people are children.
Hearing loss can happen due to a variety of reasons, such as:
- Certain infectious diseases
- Chronic ear infections
- The use of particular drugs
- Exposure to excessive noise
- Genetic causes
- Complications at birth
- Aging
Our hearing evaluations are designed to diagnose exactly which part of your ear isn’t functioning and thus allows us to create the most appropriate treatment plan for your needs.
There are four main types of hearing loss:
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
The most common type of hearing loss, sensorineural hearing loss occurs due to a problem with the inner ear or auditory nerve. It presents itself when either the auditory nerve or the hair-like cells in the cochlea have sustained damage or are missing. This results in the inability to send complete nerve signals to the brain.
This kind of hearing loss can be caused by the following:
- Genetics
- Malformation of the inner ear
- Exposure to loud noise
- Aging
- Head trauma
- Illnesses
- Drugs that are toxic to hearing (ototoxicity)
Conductive Hearing Loss
Although rather uncommon and typically temporary, a conductive hearing loss can occur in some patients. It’s caused when an issue in the outer or middle ear blocks sound from the inner ear. Treatment involves the use of medication or surgery while other individuals opt to use hearing aids to improve their hearing ability.
Conductive hearing loss can be caused by:
- Ear infections
- Benign tumors
- Swimmer’s Ear
- Foreign object in the ear
- Fluid in the middle ear from colds
- Absence or malformation of the outer ear, ear canal, or middle ear
- Allergies
- Perforated eardrum
- Impacted cerumen (earwax)
Mixed Hearing Loss
When multiple parts of the ear’s anatomy are damaged, a mixed hearing loss can occur. In most cases, both the middle or outer ear along with the auditory nerve or inner ear have sustained an injury of some type or have encountered one of the conditions listed above. The conductive hearing loss present may be reversible while the sensorineural hearing loss is often permanent.
Auditory Processing Disorders
Rather than a hearing impairment which affects the ability to detect sounds, Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) causes individuals to struggle with their ability to organize, analyze, and interpret noises around them. While all parts of the ear are functioning properly, the auditory processing centers in the brain do not function normally and it is often due to a tumor, disease, injury, heredity, or an unknown cause. APD does not always include hearing loss and many times the treatments for this disorder are dramatically different when compared to treatment for a hearing loss.
Rather than a hearing impairment which affects the ability to detect sounds, Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) causes individuals to struggle with their ability to organize, analyze, and interpret noises around them. While all parts of the ear are functioning properly, those with APD find that the hurdle they encounter is in their brain. Often caused by a tumor, disease, injury, heredity, or an unknown cause, the auditory processing centers in the brain do not function normally. APD does not always include hearing loss and many times the treatments for this disorder versus a hearing impairment are dramatically different.
According to the World Health Organization, around 466 million people worldwide have some form of hearing loss – and 34 million of those people are children.
Hearing loss is as varied as the people it affects. What works for one patient may not work for another, so that’s why we take a customized approach to your care.
Hearing loss is as varied as the people it affects. What works for one patient may not work for another, so that’s why we take a customized approach to your care.
At Premium Hearing Care we utilize a collaborative approach to hearing healthcare so we will work together as a team. Your needs and priorities are just as important as our recommendations. We also understand the value that family members and friends can bring to this important visit. We encourage all patients to bring a loved one with them to their hearing evaluation. This can also help to make you feel more relaxed and allows you to discuss your options with someone you love and trust.
We pride ourselves on taking a personalized approach to hearing healthcare, and never attempt to recommend options that take on a “one size fits all” mindset. Instead, we know that your hearing needs are as unique as you are, and we will work to create a customized solution that fits both your budget and lifestyle.
Want to do more now? Take our quick online hearing test to see if you have hearing loss!
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