Hearing Test? When, How Often, and Why?

I don’t seem to have any trouble hearing — why should I get my hearing checked? How often should someone have a hearing test? What age is this necessary? These are all questions that come up in casual conversation in my world.

Often one of these questions originates as a comment made out of frustration towards a spouse or loved one during the day to day moments of life, when someone gets aggravated by a response that’s completely inappropriate, gives you that look of “no clue”,you get the repeated “What?”, “Sorry, I didn’t hear that!”, or the very frustrating no response at all.

This triggers more frustration from the other party and the denial that there is a problem. People often ask me how do I get my mom/dad/

grandparent/spouse to come in and get a hearing test? The answer is not always easy.

It usually takes a life changing event to provoke someone to make a change. Why do we wait?

The person who is experiencing hearing difficulties is typically the last one to realize it is becoming an issue. Hearing loss happens slowly over many years therefore we learn to adapt and make due.

As I have wrote about previously, auditory deprivation can cause some very difficult situations with hearing. The earlier someone treats hearing loss typically the better the outcome.

When should we start getting routine hearing tests?

There are factors that change the answer to this question. The short answer is, if you are age 60 and you or your family feel you should have your hearing checked, it is time to schedule a hearing test. If you are reluctant you can choose to start with an online hearing screener. To further answer when you should get a hearing test, if you work in a noisy environment having an annual hearing test is beneficial also for a baseline.

How often should someone be tested?

If you have hearing aids currently you should have an annual hearing test and hearing aid check. If you do not wear hearing aids then annually is a good rule of thumb. Of course, if at anytime you or your family feel your hearing has changed you should be tested again. As well as if you experience a sudden hearing loss in one or both ears you should immediately check with a physician for medical treatment. Time is important with a sudden hearing loss, when calling into get an appointment make sure you stress you are reporting a sudden hearing loss and need to see your doctor immediately.

Why should we having a hearing test conducted?

There are issues in the middle and inner ear that can not be seen during otoscopic exam and only detected by a hearing test. It is important to not ignore changes in your hearing and have a hearing test annually or as needed. Remember, a hearing test is completely painless and the results will give you the confidence to live a healthy, happy lifestyle.