Experimental Audiometry

Department of Otorhinolaryngology

Estimates of the Word Health Organization (WHO) propose 350 millions of people suffering from hearing disorders. There is a distinction between conductive and sensorineural hearing losses. A conductive hearing loss is caused by dysfunctions of the outer and/or middle ear. Sensorineural hearing disorders are caused by dysfunctions of the inner ear (cochlea) and/or the hearing nerve. The combination hearing disorders are called combined hearing loss.

A conductive hearing loss may be corrected by a hearing restoring surgery called tympanoplasty. A sensorineural hearing disability is treated by hearing aids. In special cases bone conduction hearing aids and partial implanted hearing aids or cochlea implants are applied. While conventional hearing aids and implanted middle ear implanted aids stimulate the ear by acoustic signals, a cochlea implant stimulates the hearing nerve directly by electrical pulses. 

Therefore even in case of deafness a good speech recognition ability is obtained regularly.

The aim of the research field “Experimental Audiometry” has the task to measure normal and pathologic hearing by repeatable physical methods. This is only possible to a limited degree because “Hearing” requires additional psychological abilities which cannot be measured by physical measurements (hopefully). Nevertheless with these results the optimum therapeutic hearing aids can be chosen and fitted.  

Lesson: Biomechanics of the Ear
2 hours per semester, 3 ECTS, Master-, Bachelor-Degree Medical Engineering, TU Munich, Germany