Tinnitus Assessments are more complex than most people expect. Here is what an Audiologist looks for during a Tinnitus Assessment.
Earwax and Physical Causes
Many cases of tinnitus are caused by earwax blockages in the ear canal, or by minor infections of the ear canal. A simple check up and clearing of the ear canal is all that is needed to clear up these cases of tinnitus.
Middle Ear Pressure
This test is a short one and looks at the movement of your eardrum. If you have got a cold, or other infection, it can result in tinnitus and this test will help to determine if this is the cause of your symptoms.
Underlying Hearing Loss
Tinnitus most often affects higher frequency hearing. The clinician would complete a pure tone hearing assessment, to gain information about any hearing loss and also to identify its frequency location. For example, a significant loss at 4,000Hz might indicate causes of tinnitus.
Pitch and Loudness Matching
How do the notes from your tinnitus assessment be used? By matching the pitch and volume of your tinnitus to test tones your audiologist can work out whether sound therapy or even simple masking could help.
Impact on Daily Life
In addition to the above the clinician completes a number of questionnaires to assess the degree to which tinnitus is affecting your daily life. Typically this would be a standardised questionnaire such as the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory that looks at areas such as sleep, social interactions, and how tinnitus affects your concentration and mood.
Jaw and Neck Triggers
Jaw and Neck Triggers: Movement of the jaw in your mouth or pressure on certain parts of your neck can cause changes in tinnitus. If your audiologist identifies a musculoskeletal cause of your tinnitus, they will be able to refer you to the appropriate specialist for further treatment.
For Audiologist Cheltenham, see imperialhearing.com/audiologist-near-me/cheltenham.
By understanding what your individual tinnitus assessment will include, you can help to make the experience less intimidating.