Audiometry (speech)

This is an assessment of the patients ability to understand speech. The patient is played a tape of a series of words at varying intensities. The percentage of words correctly repeated is plotted against the intensity to produce a speech audiogram. Phonetically balanced words should be used.

Outcomes:

• normal hearing - all words are understood if played at a suitable intensity
• conductive deafness - all words are again understood but only when played at a much higher intensity
• sensorineural deficits - patient may fail to understand all the words despite a higher intensity. Speech discrimination is poor due to loudness recruitment - a condition associated with cochlea disease in which soft sounds are not heard but loud sounds are heard at their normal or higher intensities

The various parameters used include: (1)

• Speech detection threshold
• Speech reception threshold
• Speech discrimination score
• Word recognition score

Reference:

• (1) Speech audiometry. Medical content of the Children's Hospital Boston, the primary pediatric teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School.2006