What best defines mixed hearing loss?

Prepare for the ACVREP Orientation and Mobility (OandM) Exam. Use our study aids and multiple-choice questions, each with detailed explanations. Boost your confidence and succeed!

Multiple Choice

What best defines mixed hearing loss?

Mixed hearing loss means there are two issues at once: a conductive problem in the outer or middle ear and a sensorineural problem in the inner ear or auditory nerve. This combination causes a greater overall hearing loss than either issue alone. On an audiogram you’d typically see an air-conduction threshold that is poorer than bone-conduction thresholds (an air-bone gap), with bone-conduction thresholds elevated as well, reflecting the sensorineural component. A purely conductive loss would have normal bone-conduction thresholds with elevated air-conduction thresholds and an air-bone gap, while a purely sensorineural loss would show elevated bone-conduction thresholds without a significant air-bone gap. A central auditory processing disorder isn’t about peripheral hearing thresholds at all, so it doesn’t describe a mixed peripheral loss.

Mixed hearing loss means there are two issues at once: a conductive problem in the outer or middle ear and a sensorineural problem in the inner ear or auditory nerve. This combination causes a greater overall hearing loss than either issue alone. On an audiogram you’d typically see an air-conduction threshold that is poorer than bone-conduction thresholds (an air-bone gap), with bone-conduction thresholds elevated as well, reflecting the sensorineural component. A purely conductive loss would have normal bone-conduction thresholds with elevated air-conduction thresholds and an air-bone gap, while a purely sensorineural loss would show elevated bone-conduction thresholds without a significant air-bone gap. A central auditory processing disorder isn’t about peripheral hearing thresholds at all, so it doesn’t describe a mixed peripheral loss.

More practice questions