When parents notice a problem with their child's hearing, their child may need to have a hearing test and other evaluations. Some of these tests are described below, along with a discussion of why the test information is important to understanding and managing a child's hearing loss. Audiological Evaluations Behavioral Tests Behavioral hearing evaluations are used with children who are old enough to respond to sounds either by turning their head or by playing a game. Behavioral testing typically takes less than 1 hour to perform.
Behavioral tests give three main pieces of information.
First, they measure the degree or amount of hearing loss. Second, they can help in locating the problem-in the middle ear, inner ear or some combination of the two. Third, behavioral tests provide information about how the hearing loss will affect your child's ability to communicate. Sometimes testing indicates that a hearing aid could help a child. To see if this is true, behavioral testing is done while the child wears a hearing aid.