Hearing Loss: Vocab. by T.Pitt

Vocabulary with Internal Site Links: Hearing Impairment

Vocabulary

Assistive Devices or Technical Aids
Increase the sound one is trying to focus on compared to other sounds, and are often worn in conjunction with a hearing aid. For those who are too deaf to make use of conventional hearing aids, some devices convert sound into other signals-e.g. flashing light doorbells, minicom phone systems or vibrating alarm clocks; Teletext (as seen on T.V.!) is a kind of ‘Technical Aid’, as it converts spoken language into written words.
Asymmetrical Hearing Loss
Different hearing levels (as shown by a hearing test) in each ear; bilateral loss is in both ears, unilateral is in just one ear.
Audiologist
One involved in assessment of hearing &/or the rehabilitation of people with hearing loss.
Audiometry
Commonest hearing test, where you listen for & respond to tones, usually wearing headphones.
Central Processing Disorders
Difficulties in hearing or understanding which arise from damage to either the brainstem or the auditory processing pathways in the brain, where the ears themselves may be working perfectly well.
Conductive Hearing Loss
Hearing loss caused by a blockage or a physical defect in the outer ear, ear canal or middle ear (the space just behind the eardrum).
Cochlear Implant
A surgically implanted device which provides electrical stimulation directly to the inner ear; it can be used with most totally deaf people to generate a greater awareness of sound, but it does not provide a very 'speech-like' sound quality.
Effective Communication
What happens when a message passes correctly between people.
Hearing Aids
Devices worn by a person which boost incoming sounds & feed them straight to the ear canal. They are available in several styles, some of which are particularly suited to aiding certain types of hearing loss.
Hyperacusis
Oversensitivity to loud noise which is not generally loud enough to bother friends and family.
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
Sensori-Neural Hearing Loss caused by exposure to loud noise - often developed over a long time period.
O.M.E. or Glue Ear
Common condition in younger children where fluid builds up in the space behind the eardrum and blocks the hearing (sounding similar to having water or cotton wool blocking your canals).
Presbycusis
Age-related Sensori-Neural Hearing Loss.
Screening
Test which can be passed or failed but does not detail the failures; it is usually used with large groups of people to detect those requiring detailed assessment. Both adults and children can be included in screening programmes, but in most countries it is children who are more likely to be screened.
Sensori-Neural Hearing Loss
Permanent hearing loss due to damage or defects in either the Inner Ear or the Brainstem (i.e. past the middle ear in the chain of hearing and interpreting sound signals).
Sign Language
Formally structured language without spoken words where meaning is conveyed by gestures, hand movements and facial expressions.
Tinnitus
Noises heard in the ears or in the head which do not come from outside, but are real & sometimes disturbing for the person having them.