Hearing Aid Audiology & Hearing Assessment Flashcards

Which measure reflects the degree of cochlear dead regions and influences hearing aid gain recommendations?

Answer: Threshold equalizing noise (TEN) test result

The TEN test identifies cochlear dead regions where inner hair cells are absent, indicating that amplification at those frequencies may be ineffective.

What is the primary purpose of Real-Ear-to-Coupler Difference (RECD) measurements in pediatric fitting?

Answer: To convert real-ear targets to 2-cc coupler values for accurate hearing aid programming

RECD accounts for differences between an individual's ear canal acoustics and the standard 2-cc coupler, ensuring targets are applied accurately.

A patient's bone-conduction thresholds are normal but air-conduction thresholds show a 40 dB loss. What type of hearing loss is present?

Answer: Conductive

When bone conduction is normal but air conduction is elevated, the air-bone gap indicates a conductive hearing loss.

Which reflex arc is tested when measuring the acoustic stapedial reflex?

Answer: CN VIII afferent and CN VII efferent bilaterally

The acoustic reflex involves CN VIII carrying afferent signals and CN VII driving the stapedius muscle bilaterally.

What is 'rollover' on a performance-intensity function, and what does it suggest?

Answer: Decline in WRS at high intensities, suggesting retrocochlear pathology

Rollover is a decrease in word recognition scores as intensity increases beyond the optimal level, which is a sign of retrocochlear dysfunction.

According to the Carhart notch, a mechanical notch at 2000 Hz on bone conduction thresholds is most associated with which condition?

Answer: Otosclerosis

The Carhart notch is a characteristic dip at 2000 Hz bone-conduction threshold caused by the mechanical effects of otosclerosis on cochlear bone conduction.

Which masking approach is used to prevent the test ear signal from crossing to the non-test ear during bone-conduction audiometry?

Answer: Contralateral masking with narrow-band noise

Narrow-band noise is presented to the non-test ear contralaterally to prevent cross-hearing during bone-conduction testing.