- Birth – two years
For children from birth to two years old, the following test methods can be used alone or in combination to determine the child’s hearing status.
Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) Search for Threshold – A child that is resting quietly or sleeping can have their hearing tested at any age – even as young as one day old! When the ear detects a sound, electrical nerve impulses relay information to the brain. These electrical impulses can be measured and used to determine how loud sound has to be in order for it to be heard. For this test, sounds such as clicks and tones are presented to the child’s ear and the electrical response in measured to determine which sounds were heard by the child.
In the past, ABR testing required the child to be sound asleep in order to obtain accurate test results. This limited the age range of testing to birth through six months. Older children seldom sleep long enough or soundly enough to get good test results. If an ABR test was needed on a child older than six months, sedation was often required for ABR testing. Hearing Evaluation Services is proud to report that we now offer the latest in technology for ABR testing. This new wireless ABR system has eliminated the need for sleeping or sedation during testing. Therefore, we can now test a child while they are awake, playing, coloring or even eating!
Visually Reinforced Audiometry – The child is seated on a parent's lap, and sounds are presented either through loudspeakers or earphones. When a tone or speech is perceived, the child will turn their head to locate the sound. This head-turn response is rewarded by activation of a lighted toy mounted near the loudspeakers, which encourages the child to respond (i.e. turn their head) each time a sound is heard.
Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) – For children who are unable or unwilling to participate in visual reinforcement audiometry, OAEs can provide objective information about inner ear functioning. OAEs are tiny sounds generated by the movement of outer hair cells in a normal inner ear following the presentation of an auditory stimulus. These sounds are recordable in the ear canal. OAEs are absent when there is a mild sensorineural hearing loss (more than 30dB) or when there is middle ear fluid. Present OAE’s invariably imply normal inner ear function.
- Two – four years
Conditioned Play Audiometry – The child is shown how to perform a repetitive play task each time he or she hears a sound. For example, a child may be encouraged to build a tower with blocks or place a peg in a pegboard. Accurate ear specific information can be obtained when the child wears headphones or a bone conduction oscillator.
- Over four years
Traditional Audiometry – During this hearing test, the child raises his or her hand or pushes a button upon hearing a tone.
Test Methods
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