Lakeside Hearing is one of the only private audiology clinics in
the Interior assessing children younger than 5 years of age.
We offer conditioned play audiometry, tympanometry, pure tone audiometry, and otoacoustic emissions that enable us to extend our services to children 12 months of age and older. The aim of this service is to provide an accessible option for parents and to help reduce wait times for pediatric audiology services through Interior Health.
Pediatric Assessments
Otoacoustic Emissions (OAEs)
These tests provide a unique way to examine the function of the cochlea. A soft tip will be placed in the child’s ear and they will hear soft clicks and beeps from a speaker. A microphone records the response to the sound from the cochlea (known as an emission). This offers valuable information about the sensory hair cells in the cochlea and the integrity of the middle and outer ear. It requires no response from the child and can rule out hearing loss of a mild degree or greater.
Tympanometry (acoustic immittance testing)
This test helps determine how well the eardrum and middle ear are working. A gentle puff of air is delivered into the child’s ear and the amount the eardrum moves in response to change in air pressure is recorded. If the eardrum does not move, for example, it could mean there is fluid behind the eardrum and otitis media with effusion may be present.
Conditioned Play Audiometry (CPA)
CPA is used to assess the hearing acuity of children who are the developmental age of 3-5 years. The hearing is assessed by playing a game; commonly, the child will be trained to drop a block in a bucket when they hear a sound. The child will wear earphones or headphones for this assessment.
Pure Tone Audiometry
This technique is used with older children. Children are asked to push a button or raise their hand when a sound is heard through headphones or earphones.
Speech Discrimination Tests
When hearing loss is present, it is important to determine how well the child can understand speech under different listening conditions. Speech discrimination tests check the child’s ability to hear words at different listening levels. A variety of tests are available to test children ranging from 3 years onwards.
Pediatric Treatment
Hearing Aids
We offer a wide range of pediatric hearing aids from a variety of manufacturers including: Oticon, Phonak, and Resound. We collaborate with hearing resource teachers to make sure children have the optimal access to auditory information in the classroom. We offer hearing aid technology exclusively made for children of all ages with mild to profound hearing losses. Pediatric hearing aids are water resistant and dust tight so children and parents can depend upon its durability and reliability.
Roger FM System
We are a Roger partner, allowing us to access the most recent advancements in assistive listening technology to improve signal to noise ratios for children within the classroom.
Custom Swim Plugs
Impressions will be taken of the child’s ear canals. Swim plugs are often worn by children who are prone to ear infections, or have pressure equalizing tubes in their eardrums.
Auditory Processing Evaluation & Therapy
Children with auditory processing weakness often have normal hearing but demonstrate difficulty keeping up with the natural flow of speech, understanding speech in less than optimal conditions, understanding complex verbal directions, and becoming easily distracted in the presence of background noise. Many of these children will exhibit academic difficulty (specifically in language arts) if deficits remain unidentified and unmanaged.
