Tinnitus Testing: How Audiologists Diagnose and Measure Ringing in the Ears

Dealing with a ringing, buzzing, or fluttering in your ears that comes without a source? Tinnitus affects millions of Americans and people worldwide – you don’t have to deal with the sounds of tinnitus alone. 

Tinnitus isn’t a disease but rather a symptom of something else going on in your body, which could include hearing loss, earwax impaction, medical conditions, and side effects from medication you’re taking. 

With professional tinnitus management techniques, you can feel lasting relief from tinnitus. While it currently has no cure, rest assured that your audiologist will work with you to find the best treatment and management options for your unique needs.

How Do Audiologists Test for Tinnitus? 

The best way to understand your tinnitus, what you’re dealing with, and how to manage it is to first take a comprehensive tinnitus assessment. 

You can rest assured that with a tinnitus screening, we’ll be able to rule out whether medical side effects or conditions are what’s causing your tinnitus. If earwax impaction or medication could be causing your tinnitus symptoms, we’ll recommend you on how to take care of your hearing health with ear cleanings.  

Certain medications have been linked to tinnitus, and we’re happy to raise awareness about these medicines so that you can talk to your primary care provider about alternatives. 

After a quick chat about how your tinnitus is impacting you and your quality of life, we’ll move into the testing part of your tinnitus screening.  

Here, we’ll conduct a full hearing evaluation to narrow down if hearing loss is attached to your tinnitus symptoms, as the two often go hand in hand. 

You’ll answer a tinnitus questionnaire and do an evaluation to measure the scale of your tinnitus, as it manifests differently for each person. For some, it’s a slightly distracting ringing noise, while for others it’s a persistent buzzing that can affect sleep and mental health. 

We can also run additional assessments to determine how your tinnitus has affected your daily life and well-being. 

You’ll receive your results for your tinnitus screening on the same day as the assessments, and we’ll walk you through the best treatment options that match with your diagnosis, lifestyle preferences, budget requirements, and medical history. 

Tinnitus Relief with Allison Audiology 

If your tinnitus is severely impacting your quality of life, we can offer several types of treatment and tinnitus management to help you address your tinnitus in a way that best fits your needs. 

For individuals where a hearing loss is found alongside tinnitus, hearing aids are often recommended to help in treatment; hearing aids can amplify the sounds that your tinnitus was covering so you can redirect your attention to nicer sounds and stimuli.

We also offer sound therapy and behavioral therapy to address your reaction to your tinnitus and help you habituate yourself to the sound so it is less stressful and frustrating for your mental health.