My Hearing Test

I have tinnitus for 13 years and counting but have not have much troubles with it as I habituated quickly and never really had any more problems/having it get louder after that. 8 weeks ago however, I had an accident with my stereo system suddenly hitting full volume into my face, and since then I've had a spike that just won't go back down. I've had similar sounding spikes before, which mostly seem to hit at total random, but they've usually gone away within a couple of days.

Anyways, the doctor said that my results were "not very good", but after some googling I don't find them to be catastrophic, really. Sure I'm 31 and could have better results, but it's not like I'm experiencing any noticeable hearing loss in my everyday life.

My tinnitus is super high-pitched at around 14kHz and sounds like TV/radio static. On top of that my current spike is like unstable and fluctuating cricket sounds which tend to be more "in the ear", while the old stable sound is "in the head".

Any comments or info about my test would be greatly appreciated!

 

For someone in their early 30s, the majority of the speech frequency hearing curve (= 0-8 kHz) should be within 10 db. I would therefore agree with the assessment of your doctor/audiologist. Your hearing loss of 50 db at 8 kHz, left ear, is signficant and worrisome. Try having a pulsed test done the next time; perhaps your tinnitus is influencing your hearing ability at this frequency...

The reason you are still getting by without problems in your daily life is because the majority of the speech hearing curve is above 25 db. But with the hearing loss you have already developed, you could be facing difficulties before turning 40. By difficulties, I mean trouble in following a conversation (especially in an environment with background noise).

The hearing test included the 3 kHz frequency which is not always the case; bone conduction was discontinued for frequencies above 4 kHz (not normal; don't know why they did that).

I advise you to take good care of your hearing from now on, and for the rest of your life. No more loud bars/bands, cinemas and certainly not a single concert from now on (with or without earplugs). Earplugs to be used at all times when travelling long distances in cars, trains, planes, and so on...

My advice.

 

But he said it was due to an accident with his stereo system; what makes you think he will continue losing his hearing ? Hearing loss is not always a linear process advancing with age.

Your advice is very good but why are you recommending to put earplugs while travelling long distances in cars?

 

That was eight weeks ago. Temporary threshold shifts (TTS) don't take that long to recover. Therefore the recent hearing test is a reliable measure of the member's real hearing ability.

True. If people take good care of their hearing, hearing loss will be minimal. But given that +90% of all hearing loss is noise-induced (and therefore preventable), the odds are not exactly in our favour.

Because of noise. Hearing loss can occur both because of noise trauma and because of prolonged noice exposure; the impact and biological mechanisms that bring about hearing loss is different in the two cases. Reducing noise exposure also helps preserve cell energy which can - and will - be utilized for tissue regeneration.

 

Hi,
I had a similar audiogram 10 years ago (a little worse)...I experience two more sudden hearing losses and now my audiograms are worsen again.
I have -30db at 1-2 khz now, before it was arround -20 to -25...
If I compare the audiogram from 2003 and the one from this year there isn't big differrence, but my hearing is much worse now...I still,can follow communication, but it's not so clear anymore.
ATEOS is very right, protect your hearing where ever sound is expected to be loud... Airplane is loud, bars are loud...driving by car with open windows is loud, subway i.e. New York is hazardous....
You need every dB conserved, nerves aren't getting better as we age.

Ofcourse, your audiogram is still in a normal range except the 8khz, but there is already some damage, so be careful it's worth.

 

@Philip83 has your tinnitus been all noise induced?

 

I have tinnitus at high frequencies awhile now.. It really hit me on a flight back home with a cold. Fluid pressure build up in both ears and it took almost 8 weeks to drain.. The ringing never stopped since then. I personally think noise induced or trauma from a cold is identical but just different on how it happened. Protection is smart like mowing the lawn, avoiding loud concerts if possible and just being smart. But, do not over do it to not enjoy life either.

I had an audiologist tell me that hearing aids would help the situation with my "T".. I am not totally convince that I am at the point yet. I have to wonder if hearing aids make the hearing worse since you are amplifying sound directly in your ear.

 

I agree (although I am not a doctor) but i see don't how, even if the measure is reliable, you make a conclution that the process will continue.


I specifically asked about driving in a car - isn't this an overkill to use earplugs?

 

Yes, it is all noise induced. I got it from driving a loud moped when I was 17. God have I hated myself for that... Since then it never left, but up until 8 weeks ago it never got worse either, except for some random spikes. And they were always totally random. I could play 35 concerts in a row with my band for ex, wearing earplugs of course, and NEVER had any problems with that, ever. But yeah, this speaker-accident now 9 weeks ago seem to have done some permanent damage, although I'm still hoping it will settle down again, since the added characteristics of the spike is the exact same as all the other spikes I had that did settle.

TBH I also have my doubts about how well performed this hearing test was that I did. It was in an emergency room. Two nurses were in the same room as I did it (no separate sound booth for me to sit in) and it all just seemed a bit half-assed over all. They also wanted to use a suction-tool to remove wax, but I refused because it was super loud, so they used a scraper tool instead in the end which was kind of painful. Afterwards, the ENT doctor admitted straight to my face that he knew nothing about tinnitus and that I should seek professional help elsewhere. When I asked where he said "Google it".. :| Today I'm going to see a specialist in the afternoon. I'm gonna try a and do another hearing test and see if it's any different.

I think the main culprit for my below average hearing though is that I have listened a lot to in-ear headphones over the years. Music is a big part of my life and I've almost always listened to it when leaving home to go somewhere. I just LOVE music, it's therapy for my soul in every way, and so even though I do have H as well, sometimes I know I've been notching up the volume a little bit too loud cause I just can't stop myself And tbh, if it's a choice between good hearing and no music, or bad hearing and being deaf at 60, i'd pick the later any day. But yeah, the tinnitus is a big problem though, so it's not as easy as that.

By the way, does anyone know if there's any studies on the correlation between the frequency of ones hearing loss and the frequency of the tinnitus? Or is it clear that a broad hearing loss in the lower end spectrum is able to cause tinnitus in the higher end spectrum for ex? I would gladly give up all my hearing from 12.000hz and up if it'd also kill my T (which is at 14kHz).

Thanks everyone for the input!

 

Made a graph of the three tests I've taken since the spike. First one (blue) was taken 6 weeks after the spike started. Pretty damn sporadic results imo

 

Fluctuating cricket sounds, my T started with this And now I have many sounds.. lately also a spike.. for 5 days now.. I am thinking of getting some cortizol steroids..oraly.. Didnt your doctor give you steroids when you came in after the noise inducted spike? Anyways, your test is showing progress so I hope you are much better until now

 

I just had a hearing test done last week and while mine looks nothing like yours I am curious of the results on the right hand 8k+ frequencies are normal?

Mine were way lower on the dB chart, definitely above the 25 dB threshold they say but my audiologist didn't say anything about it. Mine only mentioned a slight dip in the 8khz range. Plus I don't have the records huhm. Are you supposed to hear ok in the 8k+ range and should it be below the 25 dB threshold?