Audiology

Audiologists at UAB St. Vincent’s offer hearing tests and hearing care for children and adults of all ages. If you think you or your child may have a hearing problem, we are here to help.

Our audiologists offer personalized hearing tests to diagnose hearing conditions – from newborn hearing screenings to hearing aid fitting and adjustment for older adults. We begin every appointment by listening closely to your needs and concerns, to provide the best care for you and your family.

Personalized tests

Audiologists specialize in diagnosing and treating hearing conditions such as hearing loss; Meniere’s disease (a balance disorder); and tinnitus (ringing in the ear). If your hearing changes over time, we help you adapt. Your care team conducts personalized tests to help diagnose and monitor hearing conditions.

Teen and adult audiology tests may include:

• Hearing screening
• Employee hearing tests and worker’s compensation evaluations
• Otoacoustic emission test
• Pure-tone testing
• Speech-pathology assessment

Pediatric audiology tests may include:

• Auditory brainstem response test (ABC), sometimes part of a newborn hearing test
• Behavioral audiometry
• Extended high-frequency audiometry 
• Otoacoustic emissions testing of the cochlea
• Tympanometry, a test of the middle ear

Support from other specialists

We work within a network of specialists who provide advanced care for ear, nose, and throat (ENT) disorders. This is important because some hearing problems can be caused by health conditions elsewhere in the body. As part of a network of care anchored by an academic medical center, we can connect you with specialists in ENT, neurology, and more.

Hearing aid fittings

A hearing treatment plan may include a hearing aid device, such as:

• Bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA)
• Cochlear implants
• Traditional behind-the-ear digital hearing aids with Bluetooth

Listening with hearing aids or cochlear implants takes practice. We help you adapt to your device and fit it to your ear during adjustment appointments. For hearing aid users, audiologists also provide sound therapy that can help your ears and brain work better together.