Audiology Glossary

Umbrella term for impedance and admittance measurements of middle ear function, including tympanometry and acoustic refl...

The difference in sound pressure level at the eardrum with a hearing aid in place compared to without it, measured at a...

A custom-moulded hearing aid style where all components are housed within a shell that fills the bowl of the outer ear.

The input sound pressure level at which a hearing aid transitions from linear amplification to compression, also called...

The sound intensity level at which a listener reports loudness to be uncomfortably loud; used in hearing aid fitting to...

Introduction of noise to the non-test ear during audiometry to prevent cross-hearing and ensure accurate ear-specific re...

The intensity level at which a listener perceives sound as most comfortable, used in hearing aid fitting and speech audi...

National Acoustic Laboratories hearing aid prescription formula that calculates optimal amplification based on hearing t...

Permanent or temporary reduction in hearing sensitivity resulting from exposure to hazardous levels of sound, characteri...

The hollow, booming quality of one's own voice perceived when the ear canal is occluded, caused by bone-conducted sound...

Standard abbreviation for Otitis Media with Effusion, used in paediatric audiology, ENT, and general practice documentat...

Three small bones in the middle ear (malleus, incus, stapes) that transmit sound vibrations from the eardrum to the inne...

A condition characterised by the accumulation of non-infected fluid in the middle ear space, commonly causing a mild to...

Sounds produced by the inner ear that can be measured to assess cochlear function objectively.

Progressive middle ear disease causing stapes bone fixation and conductive hearing loss, often hereditary.

Visual examination of the external ear canal and tympanic membrane using an otoscope, typically performed before audiolo...

Damage to the inner ear structures, particularly the cochlear hair cells and vestibular system, caused by certain medica...

The visible, cartilaginous outer part of the ear responsible for collecting and directing sound into the ear canal; also...

A conditioned behavioural hearing test for young children (approximately 2.5–5 years) in which the child performs a play...

Age-related hearing loss typically affecting high frequencies first due to degenerative changes in the inner ear.

A clinical procedure in which a thin probe tube placed in the ear canal measures the sound pressure level at the eardrum...

A low-intensity continuous tone of a specified frequency introduced into the sealed ear canal to measure acoustic immitt...

Standard hearing test that measures the softest sounds a person can hear at different frequencies using headphones or bo...

A single numerical value, expressed in dB HL, representing the mean hearing threshold across a specified set of frequenc...