Glossary
Hearing threshold shift: A change in hearing sensitivity or threshold, in comparison to the baseline audiogram for a particular person.Hair cells of cochlea: The sensory receptor cells of the hearing system that are directly connected to the nerve that carries sound impulses to the brain.
Vestibulocochlear nerve/Auditory nerve: The eighth cranial nerve, sensory in nature that carries auditory sensory information from the hair cells of the cochlea to the brain.
Puretone audiometry: A hearing test that consists of testing the minimum sound heard by a person in various frequencies using sounds (tones) of the standard frequencies.
Audiogram: A graph that shows the person’s minimum hearing ability at the tested frequencies. The Y axis represents the intensity of sounds and the X axis shows the frequencies.
Tinnitus: Ringing sound or buzzing sound heard in the ears.
Decibels: Unit of intensity of sound or loudness level.
Hertz: Unit of frequency of sound and defined as one cycle per second.
