How are damaged hearing nerves diagnosed?

Question

Can anyone tell me how it can be checked whether your hearing nerves are ok? I'm not talking about how they check your hearing, but specifically how doctors can check if your hearing problems are caused by damaged hearing nerves.

I've already seen a doctor and he assumed right away that my nerves were ok, without checking first. Then he did check general nerve reactions all around my body by knocking on my joints, making me touch my nose etc. Does that really tell him anything about my hearing nerves?? I mean, isn't it possibly that I have damaged hearing nerves even if the rest of the body reacts normally?

I'm just wondering if this is really the way they check it and whether this is the only way they can check it. If you know, please tell me, I'll appreciate any info on this. I need to know whether I should seek a second opinion.

Answer 1

Auditory nerve the eighth cranial nerve is tested each side. Only a tuning fork is needed. Rinne`s and Weber`s test are done. With one ear closed by your own finger the doctor excites the tuning fork and keeps the prongs near the ear that is not closed. If your hearing is diminished, the doctor repeats the test but asks you when do you hear better, when the tuning fork is near the ear or when the base of tuning fork is kept just behind the ear on the bony process called mastoid process. If hearing is diminished in both ways it is Nerve deafness. If hearing is diminished when tuning fork prongs are near the ear but improves when the base of the tuning fork is behind the ear, then you are suffering from conductive deafness not nerve deafness. Conductive deafness is when ear passages are blocked by wax ear drum perforation etc.. This type of test is repeated in the other ear. After tentatively concluding whether deafness exists and or type of it the doctor performs Weber`s test. In this the doctor excites the tuning fork, keeps the base on forehead. He asks you in which ear you hear the sound better. In nerve deafness your hearing is diminished in both ears. In conductive deafness you hear better in the ear where obstruction exists. Audiometry is more accurate and perfect way of diagnosing the type of deafness.