HEARING AID DISPENSER PRACTICE TEST
COMPREHENSIVE QUESTIONS COMPLETE WITH
VERIFIED ANSWERS
1. What BEST describes the effect on the patient if you continue to
lower a hearing instrument's kneepoint and increase the compression
ratio? Choose ALL that apply.
A. a lot of gain for soft sounds
B. very few speech cues in a crowded party
C. little or no gain for moderately loud sounds
D. too much amplification in a crowded party
Answer: A, B, & C
Rationale: Lowering kneepoint with increased compression ratio
provides significant gain for soft sounds but reduces speech cues in noisy
environments and limits gain for moderately loud sounds.
2. What frequencies would be MOST affected by a head cold?
A. High frequencies (2000, 4000 Hz)
B. Mid frequencies (1000, 2000 Hz)
C. Low frequencies (250, 500 Hz)
D. All frequencies equally
Answer: C. Low frequencies (250, 500 Hz)
Rationale: Head colds cause congestion and fluid in the middle ear,
which primarily affects low frequency transmission.
,3. What is found on the bottom of the ear canal?
A. Facial Nerve (VII Cranial)
B. Vagus Nerve (Xth Cranial)
C. Trigeminal Nerve (V Cranial)
D. Auditory Nerve (VIII Cranial)
Answer: B. Vagus Nerve (Xth Cranial)
Rationale: The Vagus nerve (Xth cranial nerve) runs along the bottom of
the ear canal and can be stimulated by ear molds or hearing aids.
4. What test would best predict the signal-to-noise ratio necessary for
a hearing impaired person to understand speech normally in noise?
A. Speech Reception Threshold (SRT)
B. QuickSIN
C. Word Recognition Test
D. Pure Tone Audiometry
Answer: B. QuickSIN
Rationale: QuickSIN specifically measures the signal-to-noise ratio
required for speech understanding in background noise.
5. What would be the BEST way to prevent an intermittency in the
hearing instrument from showing up in the delivery process?
A. 2 cc coupler N.A.L. target matching
B. Real ear testing
C. Biological check of the instrument
D. A.N.S.I. test of the instruments
,Answer: C. Biological check of the instrument
Rationale: A biological check involves listening to the instrument with a
stethoscope to detect intermittent issues that other tests might miss.
6. When both stapedius muscles contract even though only one ear is
stimulated, this is called:
A. Ipsilateral Reflex
B. Consensual Reflex
C. Acoustic Reflex
D. Contralateral Reflex
Answer: B. Consensual Reflex
Rationale: The consensual reflex occurs when stimulation of one ear
causes a bilateral stapedius muscle contraction response.
7. When considering different digital hearing instruments, open
platform technology is generally considered:
A. More complicated to program
B. Software driven
C. Hardware based
D. Less flexible for programming
Answer: B. Software driven
Rationale: Open platform technology relies on software for
programming and can be updated easily.
, 8. When discussing benefits of multi-channel digital hearing
instruments, which of the following does NOT apply?
A. Increased capacity for aid to change with hearing changes
B. Increased hearing benefit in noise
C. Exact fit to the patient's hearing loss
D. More "natural" sound reproduction
Answer: C. Exact fit to the patient's hearing loss
Rationale: No hearing instrument provides an "exact fit" to hearing loss;
they provide amplification that approximates prescription targets.
9. When one ear is better than the other and IAIS exceeds, what is
possible?
A. Recruitment
B. Cross-over
C. Shadow effect
D. Binaural interference
Answer: B. Cross-over
Rationale: When the interaural attenuation (IA) is exceeded, cross-over
stimulation of the non-test ear can occur.
10. When should patient/client concerns be addressed?
A. At the next scheduled appointment
B. Immediately
C. At the end of the appointment
D. During the follow-up call
COMPREHENSIVE QUESTIONS COMPLETE WITH
VERIFIED ANSWERS
1. What BEST describes the effect on the patient if you continue to
lower a hearing instrument's kneepoint and increase the compression
ratio? Choose ALL that apply.
A. a lot of gain for soft sounds
B. very few speech cues in a crowded party
C. little or no gain for moderately loud sounds
D. too much amplification in a crowded party
Answer: A, B, & C
Rationale: Lowering kneepoint with increased compression ratio
provides significant gain for soft sounds but reduces speech cues in noisy
environments and limits gain for moderately loud sounds.
2. What frequencies would be MOST affected by a head cold?
A. High frequencies (2000, 4000 Hz)
B. Mid frequencies (1000, 2000 Hz)
C. Low frequencies (250, 500 Hz)
D. All frequencies equally
Answer: C. Low frequencies (250, 500 Hz)
Rationale: Head colds cause congestion and fluid in the middle ear,
which primarily affects low frequency transmission.
,3. What is found on the bottom of the ear canal?
A. Facial Nerve (VII Cranial)
B. Vagus Nerve (Xth Cranial)
C. Trigeminal Nerve (V Cranial)
D. Auditory Nerve (VIII Cranial)
Answer: B. Vagus Nerve (Xth Cranial)
Rationale: The Vagus nerve (Xth cranial nerve) runs along the bottom of
the ear canal and can be stimulated by ear molds or hearing aids.
4. What test would best predict the signal-to-noise ratio necessary for
a hearing impaired person to understand speech normally in noise?
A. Speech Reception Threshold (SRT)
B. QuickSIN
C. Word Recognition Test
D. Pure Tone Audiometry
Answer: B. QuickSIN
Rationale: QuickSIN specifically measures the signal-to-noise ratio
required for speech understanding in background noise.
5. What would be the BEST way to prevent an intermittency in the
hearing instrument from showing up in the delivery process?
A. 2 cc coupler N.A.L. target matching
B. Real ear testing
C. Biological check of the instrument
D. A.N.S.I. test of the instruments
,Answer: C. Biological check of the instrument
Rationale: A biological check involves listening to the instrument with a
stethoscope to detect intermittent issues that other tests might miss.
6. When both stapedius muscles contract even though only one ear is
stimulated, this is called:
A. Ipsilateral Reflex
B. Consensual Reflex
C. Acoustic Reflex
D. Contralateral Reflex
Answer: B. Consensual Reflex
Rationale: The consensual reflex occurs when stimulation of one ear
causes a bilateral stapedius muscle contraction response.
7. When considering different digital hearing instruments, open
platform technology is generally considered:
A. More complicated to program
B. Software driven
C. Hardware based
D. Less flexible for programming
Answer: B. Software driven
Rationale: Open platform technology relies on software for
programming and can be updated easily.
, 8. When discussing benefits of multi-channel digital hearing
instruments, which of the following does NOT apply?
A. Increased capacity for aid to change with hearing changes
B. Increased hearing benefit in noise
C. Exact fit to the patient's hearing loss
D. More "natural" sound reproduction
Answer: C. Exact fit to the patient's hearing loss
Rationale: No hearing instrument provides an "exact fit" to hearing loss;
they provide amplification that approximates prescription targets.
9. When one ear is better than the other and IAIS exceeds, what is
possible?
A. Recruitment
B. Cross-over
C. Shadow effect
D. Binaural interference
Answer: B. Cross-over
Rationale: When the interaural attenuation (IA) is exceeded, cross-over
stimulation of the non-test ear can occur.
10. When should patient/client concerns be addressed?
A. At the next scheduled appointment
B. Immediately
C. At the end of the appointment
D. During the follow-up call
