A large proportion of people can hear speech in a quiet room but fail in a noisy environment such as a busy café. The test for speech in noise therefore checks this aspect of hearing.
What a Pure-Tone Test Misses
While a standard pure-tone test measures your ability to hear a variety of tonal frequencies at different volumes, it does not test your ability to hear speech in noisy environments. Therefore, even individuals with normal hearing test results may have unnoticed hearing difficulties in these types of situations.
How the Test Works
The audiologist records speech and adds controlled background noise to create different mixes of speech and other sound. The listener repeats what they heard and the score reflects the percentage of time they got half or more of the words correct. The background noise level is varied to find the level at which the listener scores roughly half the words.
What the Score Reveals
This result gives an indication of your signal-to-noise ratio threshold. The threshold score indicates how much quieter the speech can be than the surrounding noise before it is no longer heard. This score can indicate areas of hearing loss and suggest booking a Hearing Test Bristol appointment to test your hearing before any deterioration.
Who This Test Suits Best
Our hearing loss test is particularly suited to individuals who frequently have to ask other people to repeat what they have said in noisy environments such as pubs, restaurants and open plan offices.
If you are looking for Hearing Test Bristol, see www.imperialhearing.com/audiologist-near-me/bristol.
What Happens Next
Your results from the speech-in-noise test can be used to fine-tune your hearing aids for optimal performance, incorporating settings such as directional microphones and speech enhancement. In addition, your results from this test can be classified and provide further evidence for referral for further investigation if required.
Understanding your speech-in-noise score gives you a far greater insight into your hearing than a simple tone test.
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