Oto-Acoustic Emissions (OAE)
This test is used to determine cochlear status, or the cilia hair function. Normally, the cochlea does not just receive sound, it also produces sounds called (oto-acoustic emissions) OAEs as the cilia hair cells expand and contract.
During this hearing test, no response is required from the patient. The information we gather from the OAE test can be used in one of several ways:
- Screen hearing in newborns, infants, or developmentally disabled individuals
- Partially estimate hearing sensitivity
- Differentiate between sensory and neural components of hearing loss
- Test for functional or feigned, hearing loss
DID YOU KNOW?
There are four types of oto-acoustic emissions (OAE) that can be measured during the test:
1. Spontaneous oto-acoustic emissions, which are sounds emitted spontaneously without an acoustic stimulus
2. Transient oto-acoustic emissions, which are sounds emitted in response to acoustic stimuli of very short duration such as clicks or tone bursts
3. Distortion product oto-acoustic emissions, which are sounds emitted in response to two simultaneous tones
4. Sustained-frequency oto-acoustic emissions, which are sounds emitted in response to a continuous tone or sound.