Hearing Center
If hearing aids are indicated, Coastal Hearing and Balance Center will provide exceptional service and quality care.
No two people have exactly the same hearing impairment. That is why Coastal Hearing and Balance Center offers a wide range of hearing aid choices, including the latest digital and programmable technology. Coastal Hearing and Balance Center performs computerized real ear measurements. These measurements allow us to verify that the hearing aids are providing the correct amount of amplification and ensures you receive the maximum benefit from your hearing aid. We can also evaluate any hearing aids presently in use and arrange repairs when necessary.
Audiology Services |
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Hearing Testing
Adult Hearing Evaluation:
- Pure tone air and bone conduction thresholds
- Word Recognition Testing
- Tympanometry
- Acoustic reflex testing
- Evoked Otoacoustic Emissions
- Counseling
- Auditory Evoked Response Testing (AER, ABR, BAER)
- Hearing screening
Pediatric Hearing Evaluation:
- Pure tone air and bone conduction thresholds
- Earphone and Sound Field (Speaker) Evaluations
- Visual Reinforcement Audiometry
- Conditioned Play Audiometry
- Word Recognition Testing
- Select Picture Audiometry
- Tympanometry
- Acoustic reflex testing
- Evoked Otoacoustic Emissions
- Counseling
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- Hearing aid evaluation
- Hearing Aid programming
- Hearing Aid trials
- Hearing aid sales
- Hearing aid check
- Hearing aid cleaning
- Electroacoustic analysis
- Real Ear Measurement (probe microphone)
- Speech Mapping
- Real Ear to Coupler Difference (RECD)
- Hearing aid repair (in –house)
- Hearing aid repair (manufacturer)
- Earmolds
- Latest digital technology
- Very small hearing aids
- Cochlear Implants
- Cool looking hearing aids
- Easy to use hearing devices
- Analog hearing aids
- Programmable hearing aids
- Digital hearing aids
- ITE in the ear
- BTE behind the ear
- CIC completely in the canal
- CANAL
- HS half shell
- RIC receiver in the canal
- RITE receiver in the ear
- Batteries
- Hearing Aid supplies and accessories
- Hearing aid extended warranties
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What is tinnitus?
Tinnitus is the medical term for the perception of sound in one or both ears or in the head when no external sound is present. It is often referred to as "ringing in the ears," although some people hear hissing, roaring, whistling, chirping, or clicking. Tinnitus can be intermittent or constant-with single or multiple tones-and its perceived volume can range from subtle to shattering.
What causes tinnitus?
The exact physiological cause or causes of tinnitus are not known. There are, however, several likely sources, all of which are known to trigger or worsen tinnitus.
Noise-induced hearing loss - Exposure to loud noises can damage and even destroy hair cells, called cilia, in the inner ear. Once damaged, these hair cells cannot be renewed or replaced. Hearing loss can also be caused by excessive noise exposure. Coincidentally, up to 90 percent of all tinnitus patients have some level of hearing loss.
Wax build-up in the ear canal - The amount of wax ears produce varies by individual. Sometimes, people produce enough wax that their hearing can be compromised or their tinnitus can seem louder. If you produce a lot of earwax, speak to your physician about having excess wax removed manually-not with a cotton swab, but by an otolaryngologist (also called an ear, nose, and throat doctor).
Certain medications - Some medications are ototoxic-that is, the medications are toxic to the ear. Other medications will produce tinnitus as a side effect without damaging the inner ear. Effects, which can depend on the dosage of the medication, can be temporary or permanent. Before taking any medication, make sure that your prescribing physician is aware of your tinnitus, and discuss alternative medications that may be available.
Ear or sinus infections - Many people, including children, experience tinnitus along with an ear or sinus infection. Generally, the tinnitus will lessen and gradually go away once the infection is healed.
Jaw misalignment - Some people have misaligned jaw joints or jaw muscles, which can not only induce tinnitus, but also affect cranial muscles and nerves and shock absorbers in the jaw joint. Many dentists specialize in this temporomandibular jaw misalignment and can provide assistance with treatment.
Cardiovascular disease - Approximately 3 percent of tinnitus patients experience pulsatile tinnitus; people with pulsatile tinnitus typically hear a rhythmic pulsing, often in time with a heartbeat. Pulsatile tinnitus can indicate the presence of a vascular condition-where the blood flow through veins and arteries is compromised-like a heart murmur, hypertension, or hardening of the arteries.
Certain types of tumors - Very rarely, people have a benign and slow-growing tumor on their auditory, vestibular, or facial nerves. These tumors can cause tinnitus, deafness, facial paralysis, and loss of balance.
Head and neck trauma - Physical trauma to the head and neck can induce tinnitus. Other symptoms include headaches, vertigo, and memory loss.
Certain disorders, such as hypo- or hyperthroidism, lyme disease, fibromyalgia, and throacic outlet syndrome, can have tinnitus as a symptom. When tinnitus is a symptom of another disorder, treating the disorder can help alleviate the tinnitus.
My neighbor has tinnitus but says it doesn't bother her. Mine drives me nuts. Why the difference?
Approximately 50 million Americans experience tinnitus, but not everyone experiences it to the same degree. Some people hear ringing or other noises in their ears immediately following exposure to excessive noise, like right after a concert, but the sound is temporary. Other people report hearing a slight noise all the time if they listen for it, but most of the time cannot distinguish the noise over all the other sounds in their environment. Other factors can affect the severity of the condition from patient to patient, such as different degrees of hearing loss and different kinds of noises heard. Interestingly, the loudness of the tinnitus, when measured in a laboratory setting, did not correlate to the severity of the tinnitus as rated by the patients themselves. Every person has his or her own level of tolerance to the tinnitus sounds. It is a very personal and individual experience.
How We Hear
The ear has three main parts: the outer, middle and inner ear. The outer ear (the part you can see) opens into the ear canal. The eardrum separates the ear canal from the middle ear. Small bones in the middle ear help transfer sound to the inner ear. The inner ear contains the auditory (hearing) nerve, which leads to the brain.
Any source of sound sends vibrations or sound waves into the air. These funnel through the ear opening, down the ear, canal, and strike your eardrum, causing it to vibrate. The vibrations are passed to the small bones of the middle ear, which transmit them to the hearing nerve in the inner ear. Here, the vibrations become nerve impulses and go directly to the brain, which interprets the impulses as sound (music, voice, a car horn, etc.)
Kinds of Hearing Loss
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Hearing loss that results from damage to the inner ear (cochlea) the nerve of hearing or both. It is primarily experienced as a distortion of sound. Soft sounds are not heard and loud sounds are abnormally loud. Increases in volume do not typically solve the problem as distortion may remain. Hearing aids and assistive listening devices typically provide significant benefit.
Conductive Hearing Loss
Some conditions that effect the ear canal, the eardrum or the ossicles prevent sound from passing through the outer or middle ear to the inner ear (cochlea) which remains intact. Medical treatment is typically successful in improving the transmission of sound in most cases. Patients who do not want to undergo surgery may achieve significant benefit from the use of hearing aids, as their primary need is amplification. Conductive hearing loss may occur at any age and can occur suddenly or gradually.
Mixed Hearing Loss
Sensorineural (cochlea, nerve of hearing) and conductive hearing loss (eardrum, ossicles…) can occur simultaneously. Physicians refer to this as “mixed” hearing loss. Surgery, hearing aids and assistive listening devices are all treatment options.
Some Types of Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Age- Related Hearing Loss (also called Presbycusis) Sensitivity of the inner ear can deteriorate with advancing age. The result is a very gradual loss of hearing acuity that begins in the second decade of life and may be noticeable by the fifth decade of life. Symptoms vary from patient to patient. The loss occurs so gradually over time, the affected person may not notice it. High frequency sounds are affected more than low frequency sounds. Common symptoms are a reduction in speech comprehension and the ability to hear the telephone, songbird or doorbell. The TV volume may be set louder than others would prefer. These individuals hear well up to a certain elevated volume level, but may complain that loud sounds are unpleasant and background noises are particularly irritating. This type of hearing loss is typically managed with hearing aids.
Noise Induce Hearing Loss
The incidence of noise induced hearing loss is increasing as the world becomes noisier. It has been one of the most common occupational disabilities for some time.
Tinnitus Treatment Options
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