My Audiogram - Costco says I need to see a doctor before they will give me aids

Hearing Loss
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#1

They said my audiogram is not normal and that I need to see a doctor and get his sign off before they can give me aids.

They said most people can’t here higher frequencies and since most of my losses are on the low end, I have a medical problem that needs to be diagnosed by a doctor first.

Does that sound normal?

I have had tinnitus my whole life (I am ~30), but my hearing has gotten worse over the last 10 years or so.
I have decided I should try aids now to better understand speech.

I wanted to get an aid from eBay for a few hundred dollars, but I don’t think you can program them yourself. Since my hearing loss is not “normal”, I assume default settings won’t work.

I guess I should go to the ENT and then get aids from an audiologist.

Thanks for any advice!

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#2

The reason they want you to see a doctor is because you have a large difference between your air conduction results and your bone conduction results. You hear much better when sound goes through your skull instead of your outer and middle ear. It’s possible that you have a blockage in your ear canal, a hole in your eardrum, fluid in your middle ear, or damage to your middle ear bones.

#3

With the difference in AC and BC I to would recommend that you see a ENTdoctor.

#4

Wow, thank you so much. They didn’t explain that.
She did give me the through bone hearing simulation and it was amazing. Everything sounded so clear going through my skull.
Even as a kid I remember being able to hear things if I held my head against it.
Also, when eating food, the crunch through my teeth and head almost completely eliminate my ability to hear. I always have to pause my chewing to listen to someone talk. I don’t know if all people are like that or maybe I’m just worse.

I’ll go see an ENT soon.

#5

IMO, Don’t tell the ENT you have been to Costco for a hearing test.
You will get a hearing test at the ENT office. Ask for a copy of your audiogram so you can compare with the results you got from Costco after you get home. I’ve always had to ask for a copy of my audiogram from my ENT.

Hopefully you don’t need hearing aids and there’s something the doctor can do to help you. If you do need hearing aids, you don’t have to purchase them from the ENT. You can still go to Costco.

#6

The previous posts were correct - your Costco evaluation did uncover an “air/bone gap”, indicative of a conductive hearing loss. It’s not common to see your results, but that’s what ENT’s are skilled in evaluating, diagnosing and treating. It may be something that is unable to be corrected surgically, but at least you will know before ordering hearing aids to correct the loss. As for where to purchase, if you are cleared by your ENT to wear hearing aids to correct your loss, work with someone that is familiar with conductive losses and can factor that into their device selection recommendations and your lifestyle. Note: I recently saw an interesting bone-conduction hearing aid that is built into eyeglasses. Where the eyeglasses rest against the mastoid bone on the backside of the ear, they placed the bone conduction technology. Years ago this type of technology was used, but not in a low-profile, attractive way. It will be interesting to see if they ever come to market with this new, improved style of hearing aid. Best wishes with your hearing in 2015. Please give us all an update when you get a chance.

#7

Not too happy with the results.
I felt like the ENT was mainly a doctor who dealt with infections and every day sicknesses.

He sounded knowledgeable about the possible problems I might have that could cause an air-bone gap though they were vague.
He said the only way to know for sure is to do and MRI or surgery to open the ear drum and take a look. Ugh.
He said it’s not fluid behind the ear drum based on the pressure test, but my eardrum does seem stiff.

He thinks its either just congenital hearing loss due to bad follicles, bad ear bones, or otosclerosis, but not worth surgery to find out.
He recommends yearly hearing tests to see if it gets worse. If it does and I am protecting my hearing, it could be otosclerosis, which could be helped with surgery, but hearing aids would work too and not be risky.

This is all info I already knew from the internet. I guess I was hoping for a miracle cure.

I just wish there was a simple small bone conduction hearing aid. I will definitely look into those glasses.

#8

Get HA’s that will do the most for your hearing loss. Don’t worry about getting invisible HA’s because very few people will even notice them.

#9

With that loss, powerful CICs would be ideal though as long as there’s no infection etc.

#10

You have good bone conduction audiogram, probably just conductive hearing loss which should be fixed by surgery. Find a good doctor and maybe you will not need HAs at all

#11

You have a classic otosclerosis configuration. I would suggest a second medical opinion from the most reputable otologist (ENT who focuses mainly on ear surgery) in your area. Hearing aids are wonderful, but you are fortunate to be one of the small number of those with hearing loss that can possibly be improved substantially by an outpatient surgery which is routine for experienced ear surgeons. Some of the nicest letters I’ve received as an audiologist were from patients I had referred to otologists and had successful stapedectomy surgery. The risks are there, but very small in good hands. I’d give it another look.

#12

Get a 2nd opinion from a different ENT before proceeding. If the 2nd opinion concurs with your first visit described above then go ahead with hearing aids.

You prognosis sounds good as far as remediating what is a moderate hearing loss either through correcting the conductive loss and/or obtaining hearing aids. Do not get discouraged. :slight_smile: