Audiology Course

Lesson 1 • Overview of Hearing Disorders

Surveys conductive, sensorineural, and mixed hearing loss categories and their etiologies. Sets the clinical context for all subsequent diagnostic and rehabilitative chapters.

Lesson 2 • Psychoacoustics and Auditory Perception

Introduces loudness, pitch, masking, and temporal resolution as perceptual phenomena. Connects psychoacoustic principles to patient-reported hearing difficulties.

Lesson 3 • Physiology of Hearing

Explains transduction, tonotopy, and neural coding of sound. Links physiological mechanisms to observable audiometric patterns seen in clinical practice.

Lesson 4 • Physics of Sound and Acoustics

Covers frequency, amplitude, wavelength, and decibel scales as they apply to hearing. Establishes the acoustic vocabulary used throughout all clinical and diagnostic chapters.

Lesson 1 • Masking Principles and Procedures

Introduces cross-hearing, masking dilemma, and plateau method for effective masking. Correct masking prevents false thresholds and is essential for accurate audiogram interpretation.

Lesson 2 • Air-Conduction Threshold Procedures

Teaches modified Hughson-Westlake ascending method and patient instruction protocols. Accurate air-conduction thresholds form the baseline for all audiogram interpretation.

Lesson 3 • Audiogram Interpretation and Classification

Applies degree, type, and configuration classifications to completed audiograms. Interpretation skills directly inform diagnosis, referral decisions, and rehabilitation planning.

Lesson 4 • Bone-Conduction Testing

Explains bone-conduction placement, occlusion effect, and its role in identifying conductive components. Results combined with air-conduction data reveal hearing loss type.

Lesson 1 • Principles of Immittance Measurement

Explains acoustic impedance, admittance, and the physics of probe-tone measurement. Conceptual grounding enables accurate equipment operation and result interpretation.

Lesson 2 • Integrating Immittance with Audiometric Data

Combines tympanogram, reflex, and pure-tone data into a unified diagnostic picture. Integration skills are essential for accurate site-of-lesion determination.

Lesson 3 • Tympanometry Procedures and Interpretation

Covers probe insertion, pressure sweep, and Jerger classification of tympanograms. Tympanogram type directly indicates middle ear status and guides medical referral.

Lesson 4 • Acoustic Reflex Testing

Teaches ipsilateral and contralateral reflex arc measurement and threshold norms. Reflex patterns help localize lesions from middle ear to brainstem level.

Lesson 1 • Pediatric and Special Population Speech Testing

Adapts speech audiometry for children and individuals with cognitive or language differences. Modified procedures ensure valid results across diverse patient populations.

Lesson 2 • Speech Recognition Threshold Procedures

Covers spondee word lists, ascending method, and agreement criteria with pure-tone average. Accurate SRT validates pure-tone thresholds and anchors word recognition scoring.

Lesson 3 • Word Recognition Score Testing

Teaches monosyllabic word list selection, presentation levels, and percent-correct scoring. WRS data quantifies suprathreshold speech understanding and guides hearing aid candidacy.

Lesson 4 • Speech Audiometry Fundamentals

Defines speech awareness threshold, speech recognition threshold, and their clinical roles. Establishes how speech measures complement pure-tone data in a complete audiologic evaluation.

Lesson 1 • Otoacoustic Emissions: Principles and Types

Explains outer hair cell mechanics underlying TEOAE and DPOAE generation. OAE knowledge is prerequisite to newborn hearing screening and cochlear function assessment.

Lesson 2 • Auditory Steady-State Response and ASSR

Covers ASSR stimulus, frequency-specific threshold estimation, and comparison with ABR. ASSR extends frequency-specific objective audiometry, especially for infants with severe loss.

Lesson 3 • Auditory Brainstem Response Fundamentals

Introduces ABR wave generation, electrode placement, and stimulus parameters. ABR is the primary electrophysiologic tool for threshold estimation and neural integrity assessment.

Lesson 4 • ABR Threshold Estimation and Neurodiagnosis

Applies ABR to estimate behavioral thresholds and identify retrocochlear pathology. Threshold ABR is essential for infants and difficult-to-test patients; neurodiagnostic ABR detects neural lesions.

Lesson 1 • Early Intervention and Family-Centered Care

Covers early intervention timelines, family counseling, and communication modality options. Family-centered practice maximizes developmental outcomes for children with hearing loss.

Lesson 2 • Conditioned Play Audiometry

Applies play-based conditioning for children aged two to five years to obtain ear-specific thresholds. CPA bridges behavioral and conventional audiometry in the preschool age group.

Lesson 3 • Behavioral Observation and Visual Reinforcement Audiometry

Teaches BOA for neonates and VRA for infants six months to two years. Age-appropriate behavioral methods yield reliable thresholds when electrophysiologic data must be confirmed.

Lesson 4 • Pediatric Diagnostic Evaluation Battery

Integrates behavioral, immittance, OAE, and ABR results into a complete pediatric diagnostic profile. A comprehensive battery ensures accurate diagnosis and appropriate amplification decisions.

Lesson 1 • Real-Ear Measurement and Verification

Covers probe microphone placement, REIG measurement, and comparison to prescriptive targets. Real-ear verification is the gold standard for confirming that fitting targets are achieved.

Lesson 2 • Candidacy and Pre-Fitting Assessment

Evaluates audiologic, medical, and lifestyle factors to determine hearing aid candidacy. Thorough pre-fitting assessment ensures appropriate device selection and realistic expectations.

Lesson 3 • Outcome Validation and Follow-Up

Uses validated questionnaires and speech-in-noise tests to confirm real-world benefit. Outcome validation closes the fitting loop and guides counseling and fine-tuning decisions.

Lesson 4 • Hearing Aid Technology Overview

Surveys hearing aid styles, digital signal processing features, and connectivity options. Technology knowledge enables evidence-based device selection matched to patient needs.

Lesson 1 • Vestibular Anatomy and Physiology

Reviews semicircular canals, otolith organs, and vestibulo-ocular reflex pathways. Anatomical and physiological grounding is essential for interpreting all vestibular test results.

Lesson 2 • Videonystagmography Testing

Covers VNG components including oculomotor, positional, and caloric subtests. VNG is the primary laboratory tool for identifying peripheral vs. central vestibular dysfunction.

Lesson 3 • Case History and Bedside Vestibular Examination

Teaches dizziness history-taking, Dix-Hallpike maneuver, and head impulse test. Bedside examination guides test selection and provides immediate diagnostic information.

Lesson 4 • Rotary Chair and Posturography

Introduces rotary chair sinusoidal harmonic acceleration and computerized dynamic posturography. These tests quantify bilateral vestibular loss and sensory integration deficits.