Masking Masking presents a constant noise to the nontest ear to prevent crossover from the test ear. Thresholds obtained using masking are called masked thresholds and should represent the true threshold of the test ear. A masking dilemma occurs when sufficient masking from the nontest ear crosses over to the test ear and affects threshold testing for the test ear. In this case, a reliable masked threshold cannot be obtained. This generally occurs only in the presence of a substantial conductive component to the hearing loss.
Spondees are bisyllabic words equally emphasizing both syllables.
Patients with this degree of loss may not hear soft speech. Children may be fatigued after listening for long periods. Patients with this degree of loss will have trouble hearing some conversational speech. Patients with this degree of loss will not hear most conversational-level speech. Conductive This type of hearing loss is secondary to outer ear or middle ear abnormality, which can include abnormalities of the tympanic membrane.