Unsure About Your Hearing?
We Can Help
At James Hearing, we specialise in hearing care and rehabilitation. We provide in-depth clinical hearing tests for the assessment of hearing loss.
Hearing Tests in Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire & Bedfordshire
James Hearing offers a comprehensive range of private hearing tests for adults along with specialist hearing tests for children at our centres, allowing for treatment to be tailored to the individual.
We combine an unrivalled breadth of knowledge and expertise to undertake a precision hearing test, prompt diagnosis and develop a action plan for treatment. We can complete a diagnostic hearing test to determine if you may require a Hearing Aid. Should a medical referral be needed, we can also arrange this. Hearing test appointments are always available at convenient and flexible times to suit your lifestyle.
How It Works
Our three step process will assess your hearing and help identify any underlying issue.
Assessment
We offer an in-depth assessment which includes a comprehensive diagnostic battery of tests which include:
- Hearing Assessment
- Tympanometry (if needed)
- Explanation of hearing and any results
- Evaluation of your objectives
- Treatment options
Treatment
If you decide that you wish to treat your hearing loss, we will set out a clear treatment plan that includes the hearing aids that suit you and your objectives best and rehabilitation journey that makes sense for you
Review
Reviews are part of your treatment plan, incorporated with initial follow up appointments over 2-4 weeks, a further assessment in 6 months and annual check-ups.
Untreated hearing loss affects wider well being
Hearing loss is a slow process, it can creep up in a such a way that many people don't realise there is an issue. However, untreated hearing loss has a dramatic effect on the general health and well-being of the people who suffer with it. Untreated hearing loss is connected to self-isolation, loneliness and even depression. We also know that it is linked to falls and faster rates of cognitive decline. But many of these problems can be relieved by treating your hearing loss.
Hearing aids are all about staying young
Many people feel that hearing aids are all about getting old. They aren't, hearing aids are all about staying young. They enable people with hearing loss to engage in a more active lifestyle, socialising more, enjoying life more, those things keep you young.
Types of Hearing Test
Pure Tone Audiometry (Hearing Test)
A hearing test also known as pure tone audiometry measures the quietest sounds you can hear in sound-proof conditions. Its purpose is to verify the degree and type of any hearing loss.
During the hearing test you will be required to wear headphones or ear inserts and press a small button in response to a variety of tones at various levels of frequency and intensity. A full detailed report of a client's hearing can be provided to explain the hearing test results. We can also discuss the appropriateness of hearing aids or further diagnostic investigations can also be recommended. Pure tone audiometry is adaptable to suit young children and learning disabled adults.
Tympanometry
Tympanometry is a medical test that measures the function and movement of the eardrum and middle ear. The results of tympanometry are represented on a graph called a tympanogram. The test is usually quick and painless, unless the eardrum or middle ear are inflamed.
The tympanometer causes the air pressure in your ear canal to change as you hear a low-pitched tone. The feeling is similar to the pressure changes felt during takeoff and landing when you’re on a plane. While the pressure is changing, measurements of your eardrum’s movement will be taken and recorded. It is important that you are quiet and still during this test.
Cortical Evoked Response Audiometry (CERA)
A CERA or Cortical Evoked Response Audiometry is an objective hearing test, that records the signals from the auditory cortex (part of the brain that recognises sound) that have been generated in response to sounds introduced to the ears.
The test gives information about the level of sound needed to produce a signal and confirms the status of the auditory cortex.This is valuable information that we can not obtain from a normal hearing test.
The CERA appointment takes approximately two hours to complete and you’ll be asked to bring a book so you or your child can be as relaxed as possible during the test. It involves placing electrodes behind the ears and on your head and these are then connected to the computer. A series of tones at various loudness levels are then produced to help us analyse the responses.
We perform CERA tests for ENT Consultants, Solicitors and Medico-Legal agencies.
