IHS Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield IHS facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Which frequency region is most critical for maximizing speech discrimination when fitting hearing aids? → 2,000–4,000 Hz (high-frequency consonant region)
2. When reprogramming a repaired hearing aid, what does the audiology assistant do? → Start a new programming session.
3. What do equal loudness contours (Fletcher-Munson curves) demonstrate about human hearing? → The ear's perceived loudness varies with both frequency and sound intensity level
4. Which of the following is considered a method of hearing aid validation, not verification? → Using the Client Oriented Scale of Improvement (COSI).
5. According to ASHA guidelines, what is the recommended starting frequency for pure-tone threshold testing? → 1000 Hz
6. Insertion Loss occurs when; → The level in the ear canal with a hearing aid inserted is less than the input level.
7. What is the standard unit used to measure sound frequency? → Hertz (Hz)
8. According to the inverse square law, what happens to sound pressure level when the distance from a point source is doubled? → It decreases by approximately 6 dB
9. Which of the following best describes a pure tone? → A single-frequency sinusoidal sound wave
10. Which noise is best for masking during pure tone air and bone conduction testing? → Narrow band noise
11. Which sound field test should be used to evaluate the benefit of directional microphones? → Quick Speech in Noise (QuickSIN)
12. Which of the following structures is responsible for transducing mechanical sound vibrations into electrical signals for the brain to interpret? → Organ of Corti
13. Why should an audiology assistant recommend that clients/patients not pull their earmolds out of their ears by the tubing? → Doing so will eventually pull the tube out of the earmold.
14. High frequency Average SSPL 90 (HFA SSPL 90) refers to: → high frequency average saturation sound pressure level with a 90 dB SPL input.
15. What does RT60 (reverberation time) measure in room acoustics? → The time required for sound to decay by 60 dB after the source stops
16. A primary goal of the initial needs assessment, using tools like the Client Oriented Scale of Improvement (COSI), before selecting a hearing instrument is to: → Identify and prioritize the client's specific listening goals and difficulties.
17. A hearing aid that works with the battery door slightly open, but shuts off when you close the door: → wires touching the battery.
18. The primary purpose of maintaining accurate and comprehensive client records, as required by professional standards and regulations like HIPAA, is to: → Ensure continuity of care and provide a legal document of the services rendered.
19. A tympanic membrane perforation may cause a: → Conductive loss.
20. The impedance matching function of the middle ear is crucial for hearing because it: → Compensates for the loss of sound energy when vibrations pass from air to a fluid medium.
21. In acoustics, what does one octave represent? → A doubling of frequency
22. In a hearing instrument, what is the term for the entire frequency range within which unique, specific signal processing is performed? → channel
23. During pure-tone air conduction audiometry, what is the standard procedure for finding the threshold of hearing after a patient responds to a tone? → Decrease the intensity by 10 dB and present the tone again.
24. What is the primary purpose of a directional microphone system in a hearing aid? → To improve speech understanding in noise by emphasizing sounds arriving from in front
25. User satisfaction must include: → patient preference.
26. What is the correct sequence of structures that auditory information passes through in the primary ascending auditory pathway after leaving the cochlear nerve? → Cochlear Nucleus, Superior Olivary Complex, Inferior Colliculus, Medial Geniculate Body
27. During audiometric testing, you establish an air-bone gap of 20 dB in the right ear. What does this finding most likely indicate? → A conductive or mixed hearing loss in the right ear.
28. What is the commonly cited threshold of pain for sound pressure level in humans? → 140 dB SPL
29. Which surgical technique repairs the tympanic membrane? → Myringoplasty
30. What type of screening assessment would need to be scheduled prior to a procedure for pressure equalization tubes? → immitance screening