What Is Binaural Testing?
Binaural testing helps to assess hearing in both ears as a method of determining how well the brain can process what both ears hear. The testing includes the assessment of binaural integration and separation.
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Auditory Processing
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Binaural testing can be used as an initial screen for auditory processing disorder, or APD, in which the brain has difficulty processing sounds that it takes in from the ears, even if the ability to hear tests as normal. Children who are at least 7 years old and can hear normally can undergo binaural evaluation. Unlike simple hearing tests, binaural testing is not routinely or regularly done.
Binaural Integration
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Binaural integration assesses the ability of an individual to process different information taken in simultaneously by each ear. This tests how well the brain can separate sound heard by each ear.
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Binaural Separation
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Testing of binaural separation requires the listener to ignore signals in one ear while focusing on signals in the other ear and then repeat back that information. It measures the ability of the brain to block out stimuli from one ear while concentrating on signals from the other. Other specific tests may be ordered. Which tests and when they are done depends on multiple factors like age, symptoms, and findings.
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