Page 18 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, September 30, 2022 avy eniiooravvy S iorn or avvyavy vvy io iori by Jim Miller Free Online Hearing Tests You Can Take at Home Dear Savvy Senior, Can you recommend any good online hearing tests? My husband has hearing loss, but I can’t get him to go in and get his hearing checked, so I thought a simple online test could help him recognize he has a problem. What can you tell me? Loud Talking Linda Dear Linda, There’s actually a growing number of very good online and appbased hearing tests available that will let your husband check his hearing on his own. These tests are a quick and convenient option for the millions of Americans that have mild to moderate hearing loss but often ignore it, or don’t want to go through the hassle or expense of visiting an audiologist for a hearing exam. Who Should Test? Hearing loss for most people develops gradually over many years of wear and tear, which is the reason many people don’t realize they actually have a hearing problem. Anyone who has diffi culty hearing or understanding what people say, especially in noisier environments or over the phone. Or, if you need a higher volume of music or TV than other people, should take a few minutes to test their hearing. Self-Hearing Tests Online and app-based hearing tests can serve as a great screening tool. They are not meant to be a diagnosis, but rather to give you an idea of how bad your hearing loss is and what can be done about it. For most do-it-yourself hearing tests, you’ll be advised to wear ear headphones or earbuds and sit in a quiet spot. You also need to know that there are two diff erent types of tests available. One type is known as pure-tone testing, where tones are played in decreasing volumes to determine your specifi c level of hearing loss. And the other type is known as speech-in-noise or digits-in-noise (DIN) where you’ll be asked to identify words, numbers, or phrases amid background noise. Where to Test If your husband uses a smartphone or tablet, two of my favorite app-based hearing tests are the hearWHO app created by the World Health Organization, and the Mimi Hearing Test app. Both apps are free to use and are available through the App Store and Google Play. HearWHO allows users to check their hearing status and monitor it over time using a DIN test, while Mimi uses pure-tone and masked threshold tests to give you a detailed picture of your hearing abilities. There are also a wide variety of online hearing tests your husband can take on a computer. Some top online tests – all off ered by hearing aid manufacturers – for speech-in-noise or DIN tests can be accessed at ReSound (resound.com/en-us/online-hearing-test) and Mircle Ear (miracle-ear.com/online-hearing-test). And some good online hearing tests for pure-tone testing are available by Signia (signia.net/en/service/hearing-test); Ergo (eargo.com/hearing-health/hearing-check); and MD Hearing Aid (mdhearingaid.com/hearing-test). All of these hearing tests are completely free to use and take less than fi ve minutes to complete. What to do with Results If the tests indicate your husband has hearing loss, it’s best to think of that as a starting point. He should take results to his doctor or an audiologist for further evaluation. Many insurance providers and Medicare Advantage plans cover routine hearing exams, however original Medicare does not. If his hearing loss is mild to moderate, he should look into the new over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids, which are available this fall online and at retailers like Best Buy, Walgreens and CVS. OTC hearing aids don’t require a prescription or medical examination for purchase and they’re much more aff ordable than traditional hearing aids you buy through an audiologist or a licensed hearing instrument specialist. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. Meet the 2022 Mystic Valley Charter School Boys’ Varsity Eagles Soccer Team MV Eagles Boys Soccer Team: Pictured back row, pictured from left to right: Head Coach Eric Martin, Guilherme Silva, Sebastian Saad, Ayoub Lamaallem, Adam Elbadaoui, Cameron Martins, Ryan Oukani, Matthew Nguyen, Aaron Girma Ketema, Logan Cargill and Evan Montrose. Front row, pictured from left to right: Graham Kugele, Yafet Dawit, Zachary Rubin, Shreyas Dass, Yasser Belatreche, Ryan Nguyen, Wesley Rosell, Ethan Danoff and Stephen Carter. Seniors, pictured from left to right: Matthew Nguyen, Guilherme Silva, Ryan Oukani and Aaron Girma Ketema. (Courtesy photo, Emily Brennan) Soccer Captains during their game on Tuesday at home. Pictured from left to right: Matthew Nguyen, Guilherme Silva and Ryan Oukani. (Advocate photos by Tara Vocino)
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