The OAE (Otoacoustic Emissions) test evaluates a portion of the inner ear’s sound response. The test is mostly performed on infants and children who, due to their age, may be unable to respond to behavioral hearing tests. Otoacoustic emissions are sounds given off by one small part of the cochlea when it is stimulated by soft clicking sounds. When the sound stimulates the cochlea, the outer hair cells vibrate. The vibration causes a nearly inaudible sound to reverberate back into the middle ear. Rubber tips will allow your child to hear soft sounds. A computer will record quiet echoes from the ear. This test does not require your child to sleep. However, your child, as well as everyone else in the room, must be able to sit still and be very quiet for this test. During this test, your child will not feel anything.
Hearing testing made rewarding. There are two methods to record OAEs: transient evoked OAEs and distortion product OAEs.
