I have an appointment with an audiologist on Tuesday...I'll be making sure to come equipped with my 16-page symptom diary (4 months June-October) and my correspondence with researchers (Paul Fuchs), and information from the Hyperacusis Research website. Worried they're going to force me to undergo a hearing test (apparently this is part of the appointment) although surely I have the right to refuse? I have had standard audiograms administered before and scored 'perfectly' - I don't want to be labelled as uncooperative or non-compliant but I'm sort of thinking - what purpose would it serve anyway, in the context of pain hyperacusis?
Best of luck with it. Totally agree, hearing tests shouldn't automatically be necessary with tinnitus or hyperacusis being the complaint, especially if you have already had one done showing otherwise sound hearing, or if you are confident you have sound hearing, as they cant indicate or prove anything to do with these conditions, just potentially make them worse. If hearing loss is suspected as well, then perfectly understandable, but this dumb logic that ALL hearing problems need a hearing test doesn't make sense. Just seems like a de facto standard cash grab as soon as you walk into an audiologists no matter what your hearing symptoms are they need to get their money and justify it with a hearing test. I may sound cynical about this, but I saw 3 different ENTs and audiologists within approx 12 months, my only complaints being tinnitus and noxacusis. The first wanted a hearing test done which showed no significant hearing loss, but the next 2 also wanted their own hearing tests done as well even though I brought the results with me from the previous tests. All three told me my hearing was fine (in terms of hearing loss), which I'd never even raised as a complaint.
The other tests like LDL, tinnitus matching etc. I'm reluctantly starting to slightly change my view on for one (non medical) reason only. I think these tests are unnecessary, dangerous, and pointless from a health perspective. I had a tinnitus matching test done once and it indicated pure tone at 6 kHz and 8 kHz 30 dB and 40 dB in respective ears. I asked, so what can we do with that info? He said, nothing, it just indicates that you have tinnitus. I knew I had tinnitus without taking a test and thought at the time how pointless it seemed. But I do now think these tests are sadly essential hoops to jump through to get an official record of your condition, in order to obtain meds, disability, any other type of support etc. It blows my mind though that some people, myself included, have been further harmed by these tests.
EDIT - all that being said above about hearing test not being necessary for tinnitus and hyperacusis assumes standard tests. However, if extended audiograms were offered then that could be a different thing altogether.
Been there, done that. Verbatim.
It just continues on and on doesn't it. Scared suffering people, in some cases paying huge sums for the same old bad and dangerous advice being churned out over and over again.
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