← Return To Knowledge Base

Acquired Deafness – Hearing loss not present at birth, but that develops over time

Acoustic neuroma – A noncancerous tumor that grows on the nerve traveling from the ear to the brain. Hearing loss, vertigo, and tinnitus can be symptoms.

American Academy of Audiology – Largest of the professional organizations for audiologists.

American Sign Language (ASL) – Manual (sign) language with its own syntax and grammar used primarily by people who are deaf.

American Speech Language Hearing Association – A professional organization for both speech–language pathologists and audiologists.

Amplifier – An electronic sound processor located inside of a hearing aid that increases the incoming signal to improve the audibility of the outgoing signal.

Amplified telephone – A telephone that is equipped with a volume control built into the handset.

Amplitude – The physical intensity of a sound.

Anvil (Incus) – The second of the three bones in the middle ear.

Apical region – The tip of the snail-shell-shaped cochlea, where low frequency sounds are detected and sent to the brain.

Assistive Listening Devices (ALD’s) – Non–hearing aid devices used by a hearing impaired individual to improve communication and the performance of activities in specific environments. ALDs include devices such as infrared and FM personal amplifiers, alerting devices, and closed captioning equipment.

Audiologist – A healthcare professional trained to evaluate hearing loss and related disorders, including balance (vestibular) disorders and tinnitus, and to rehabilitate people with hearing loss and related disorders. Audiologists use a variety of tests and procedures to assess hearing and balance function and to fit and dispense hearing aids and other assistive devices for hearing loss. Most audiologists have advanced doctorate degrees.

Atresia – The absence or closure of the external auditory meatus (ear canal).

Audiogram – A chart onto which is graphed the results of a hearing test. The chart has intensity levels listed on one axis and frequencies (pitches) listed on the other axis.

Audiology – The science of the assessment and management of hearing and balance disorders.

Audiometer – The electronic piece of equipment employed by a hearing healthcare professional to assess the hearing thresholds and speech awareness / processing ability of an individual.

Audiometry – Another name for a hearing test or hearing evaluation.

Aural Rehabilitation – Therapy or training sessions designed to improve communication skills.

Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) Test – Used to test the hearing of infants and young children, or to test the functioning of the hearing nerve. This painless procedure involves attaching recording disks to the head to record electrical activity from the hearing nerve and brainstem.

Auditory Nerve – Eighth cranial nerve that connects the inner ear to the brain.

Auditory Perception – Ability to identify, interpret, and attach meaning to sound.

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) – Inability of an individual with normal hearing and intelligence to differentiate, recognize, or understand sounds normally. Learn more about APD.

Auditory Reflex – Any reflex occurring in response to a sound. If the ear is essentially deaf, there will not be any auditory reflex.

Autoimmune Hearing Loss – Hearing loss when one’s immune system produces abnormal antibodies that react against the body’s healthy tissues. Maybe associated with tissue–causing disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.