This is a general term that people describe variously as feeling faint, giddy, light-headed, unsteady or woozy. Others feel a sense of imbalance or disequilibrium. Very often dizziness is one of the first signs that a ototoxic drug is beginning to affect the balance system.

A test to determine whether you have BPPV. The test requires moving quickly from a seated position to lying down with your head at a 45-degree angle.

The inexact reproduction of sound. Hearing aids, like all electronic devices produce a small amount of distortion. Typically, the closer to the maximum sound you run an audio device such as a hearing aid, the greater the distortion. Therefore, you should get a hearing aid that has enough power so you run it about half […]

A hearing aid that is mass-produced to be so inexpensive that it is thrown away once its battery has worn out—usually in 30 to 45 days.

An audiologist who sells and fits hearing aids, evaluates hearing and provides some aural rehabilitation. Most audiologists are now dispensing audiologists.

Hearing clarity—the ability to tell apart (discriminate between) similar-sounding words such as “fun” and “sun.” People with normal hearing generally have 100% discrimination. If your discrimination scores drop below 40% to 50%, you won’t understand much of what you hear, no matter how loud it is. Speech then sounds more like gibberish or a foreign […]