About Harriet Jacobster, Au.D. Expertise I can answer questions regarding non-medical treatment of hearing loss such as hearing aids and aural rehabilitation. I am also able to answer your questions regarding hearing testing, what types of tests are appropriate, what information a hearing test gives you and what it doesn't give you. As a classically trained musician, I can also answer issues dealing with hearing loss specific to musicians.
Experience I am a Board Certified Doctor of Audiology with over 25 years' of experience working with both children and adults. I have given lectures on Hearing Loss and Hearing Aids to several state chapters of national organizations for the deaf and hard of hearing. I also taught Speech Reading and Aural Rehabilitation both privately and for the Florida Deaf Service Center.
Organizations American Academy of Audiology
American Speech Language Hearing Association
Education/Credentials Au.D. Doctor of Audiology, Nova Southeastern University 2000
Question Dr. Jacobster... I went to an ENT after having hearing loss in my left ear. He thought it might be viral damage to the nerve, but then decided it was a blocked eustatian tube. It did not clear up and he ordered an MRI, which showed nothing abnormal. What do you think of a graph that shows the right and left ear response following the same curve, but one above the other?
Now, did you have a good time with my mother?
Answer Hi David,
Eustachian Tube Dysfunction (ETD) and Viral damage show up totally differently on the audiogram. Any asymmetrical loss must be investigated and the possibility of a tumor needs to be ruled out. In your case, the MRI ruled this out.
Now, when a hearing test is done, several different types of responses are obtained: responses to pure tones presented to the ear via air conduction, via bone conduction and responses to speech stimuli. I am assuming that when you say the right and left ear responses follow the same curve, that the responses from bone conduction (the inner ear) are the same but that responses via air conduction (from the outer and middle ears) are different. If this is the case, then the ear with the poorer responses has a conductive loss...that is, a mechanical loss in the outer or middle ear. This is due to a blockage in the outer or middle ear, such as fluid, ear wax, or a vacuum in the middle ear that impedes the conduction of sound. The latter case happens in ETD. Viral damage, however, shows up as an asymmetry in the bone conducted (inner ear) responses.
There is actually a simple test for ETD that can be performed by any audiologist.
What treatment has the ENT recommended?
Now for your last question...I'm not quite sure how to answer that....
