Our world has become increasingly digitized these days. We can buy our groceries, electronic goods, cosmetics, and every other daily need via the internet. Nowadays, we can even avail free online hearing exams to see if we suffer from hearing loss, but how good are they at really detecting hearing loss?
The good part about taking online tests is that you can take them in the comfort and privacy of your own home. Also, some of them are totally free of cost so it saves you quite a lot of money. This makes them very convenient as well as cost effective. This in turn implies that people are more likely to actually take hearing tests since they are much more discreet and easily accessible.
However, despite many of the advantages listed above, there are some serious drawbacks to online hearing examinations that should be considered. Even if you manage to find a hearing test that is very reliable, the results can still be misinterpreted in the absence of an expert who can explain the true diagnoses and interpretation of the findings.
Online hearing exams do not have any means of conducting physical examinations of your ear. This means that there may be simple reasons for your hearing loss that may not be taken into account by online hearing tests. This includes excessive earwax as well as ear infections that can be treated by a medical professional.
The results from hearing exams that are taken online may vary from actual hearing exams within professional settings. This is because the average household is very noisy, and extraneous noises may interfere with your test results. Furthermore, you may tend to get more easily distracted at home than you would be in a professional setting. Your attention to more subtle sounds may become more diluted as a result, which can hamper with your test results.
Online hearing tests are very convenient tools to get you started towards taking care of your hearing health. If you do decide to get an online hearing exam done, do make sure you follow up with a hearing test done by a hearing care professional if your test results indicate even a mild form of hearing loss.
Technology has definitely helped bring hearing loss out of the dark ages and into the knowledge of the average American. However, hearing care technology requires specialized expertise in order to be understood and implemented. Give your ears the extra care they need and seek the help of a qualified audiologist in order to get the best results and also get on track with treatment methods such as getting hearing aids to treat your hearing loss.