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Welcome to Dublin Audiology

We offer comprehensive audiological care to children and adults in a warm and friendly environment


Find out more about us Book An Appointment

Welcome to Dublin Audiology

Located in the Dublin's city centre, we are an Audiology practice dedicated to offering the highest standard of care to you or your loved one.


Find out more about usBook An Appointment

At Dublin Audiology, our aim is to offer a personalised and understanding approach to assessing your hearing needs

In our clinic, you will always find friendly and professional staff. We are passionate about ensuring you receive the highest standard of care and attention.

- Jen, Audiologist

About Our Practice

Dublin Audiology Centre is an Audiology practice, working in collaboration with ENT Consultants. We are dedicated to giving each patient the highest standard of care
We have a city centre location - across the road from the Mater Misericordiae Hospital and within a few minutes walk of Temple Street Children's University Hospital

Diagnostic Audiology

Dublin Audiology provides expert and comprehensive evaluation of hearing for all ages by a diagnostic Audiologist. Diagnostic tests are carried out to assess hearing disorders, provide guidance to the patient, parents or family, and recommend the appropriate care. The test selection depends on the age and development of the patient; each patient is given personalised and individual attention. For children, the hearing test is fun and both age- and developmentally-appropriate.

ENT Care

All ENT Consultants are full time practitioners at Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital and St. Vincent's Hospital. Each Consultant has been extensively involved in the medical/surgical management and investigation of hearing loss for many years. Surgical experience ranges from the management of chronic ear disease, ossicular reconstruction, hearing aid advice and provision of Bone anchored hearing aids.

Other Services

Swim plugs: custom made swim plugs offer superior ear protection for any water based activities, including swimming, showering and bathing. Made from a soft, comfortable silicone type material, swim plugs are hypoallergenic, floatable and long lasting. They come in a variety of bright colours. By keeping water out of the wearer’s ears, swim plugs help to prevent ear infections from occurring and protect the ear if a grommet or perforation is present in the ear drum.

Swim bands: we stock Ear Band-It(TM) swim bands in a wide range of sizes and colours

Tinnitus education and advice

AUDIOLOGY

Jennifer Sim

Audiologist

Jen grew up in Australia, qualified as an Audiologist in 1995 and has worked in Australia, England and Ireland. Jen worked as the Chief Audiologist at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital before moving to Temple Street Children's University Hospital where she worked as a Senior Audiological Scientist for nearly 9 years. Jen has been working at Dublin Audiology Centre since 2012.

Jen is on the council of the Irish Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists and is a member of the Irish Academy of Audiology, Audiology Australia and the International Society of Audiology. Jen moved to Ireland in 2003 and lives here very happily with her husband and 2 young boys.

Secretary: Angela McDonnell Dublin Audiology Centre
018828503 / 0831234048
info@dublinaudiology.ie


ENT Consultants

Prof. Michael Colreavy

Consultant Otolaryngologist

Prof. Michael Colreavy specialises in Paediatric and adult ENT care. He is based at both Temple Street Children’s University Hospital and the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital.

Secretary: Denise Simpson, Medical Consulting Rooms, 12 Berkeley Rd, Dublin 7
0892079066
denise.simpson@materprivate.ie


Mr. Mohamed Amin

Consultant Otolaryngologist

Mr. Mohamed Amin specialises in Paediatric and adult ENT. Following his higher surgical training with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Mr. Mohamed Amin undertook a Fellowship in Rhinology and anterior skull base surgery in the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital, University College London. This highly specialized fellowship has allowed Mr. Amin to develop a wide scope of Rhinology practice ranging from nasal allergy to complex endoscopic sinus surgery, sinus tumor surgery and functional and aesthetic septorhinoplasty surgery. Mr. Amin is also based at Temple Street Children's University Hospital and Mater Misericordiae University Hospital.

Secretary: Eimear Stewart, Medical Consulting Rooms, 12 Berkeley Rd, Dublin 7
089 6029450
aminsecretary@materprivate.ie


Mr. Stephen Kieran

Consultant Otolaryngologist

Mr. Stephen Kieran specialises in paediatric and adult otology (ear surgery). He is based at both Temple Street Children’s University Hospital and the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital.

Secretary: Claire Coote, Mater Private Hospital, 69 Eccles Street
01 8822622
Secretary: Jacinta O’Connor Consultants Private Clinic, Temple Street Children’s University Hospital
01 872 5599


Prof. Tom Moran

Consultant Otolaryngologist

Prof. Tom Moran specialises in Paediatric and adult ENT care, with a focus on head and neck masses, otology, thyroid, nose and sinus, and salivary glands. He is also based at both Temple Street Children’s University Hospital and the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital.
Secretary: Rebecca Aliphon 0861890829
tmoran@svcpc.ie


Assessments

We offer a comprehensive range of diagnostic audiological assessments for all ages in a purpose built setting with very caring and understanding staff.

Pure Tone Audiometry (PTA)

Suitable for adults and older children
This test assesses your hearing sensitivity across a range of frequencies (pitches) which cover those used in speech. It involves sitting in a sound-treated room, listening to sounds via headphones and responding by pressing a button every time you hear a sound.

Play Audiometry

Suitable for children > 2.5 years
Similar to PTA, this test assesses your child’s hearing sensitivity across a range of frequencies (pitches) covering those used in speech. Rather than responding by pressing a button, your child will respond using a conditioned play activity, e.g. dropping a block in a tub, placing a ring on a stand.

Visual Reinforcement Audiometry

Suitable for children aged 7 months – 2.5 years
During VRA testing, your child will be seated on your lap or on their own in a sound-treated room. Sounds (warble tones, narrow band noise or speech) of varying intensity (volume) are presented from one of two speakers. If a sound is heard by your child, then he or she turns toward the appropriate speaker and is rewarded by a visual stimulus (video image) flashed immediately after the presentation of the sound. A test assistant is seated facing the child to keep their attention forward between each sound.

Impedance Testing

Suitable for all ages
This is a quick test used to assess your middle ear. It involves placing small plugs in your ears that record your middle ear pressure. It may include listening to some loud noises for a few minutes in order to measure the reflex of the muscles in the middle ear.

Otoacoustic Emissions

Suitable for all ages
This is a valuable test that assesses your outer hair cell function in the cochlear (hearing organ in the inner ear). It involves listening to a clicking sound or a combination of two tones for a few minutes. The results are recorded using a computer.

Speech Audiometry

Suitable for adults and children
This is a test that assesses your ability to understand speech using single words. It involves listening to words and repeating what you have heard to the audiologist who records the results. For younger children, rather than repeating the word, they may point to the object (toy/picture) instead.

Testimonials

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I make an appointment for a hearing test? Do I need a referral from my GP?

Referrals can be made directly by General Practitioners, Public Health Nurses or other Allied Health Professionals. You are also welcome to contact us directly if you are concerned about your’s or someone else’s hearing and we can arrange an appointment.

How should I prepare for my hearing test?

Please ensure that your ears are free of wax before your appointment as a build up of wax may have an effect on the hearing test result. Your GP should be able to check if your ears are clear and remove the wax if necessary.

What to expect during my / my child's audiology appointment?

First of all a detailed medical history will be taken. Then various painless and age-appropriate tests will be carried out. Results will be shared and any questions answered. Options of treatment/management will be discussed and the appropriate action can be arranged.

What happens if I have / my child has a hearing loss?

Some hearing problems can be medically or surgically treated however other may be more permanent requiring the use of hearing aids. If a hearing loss is found and you are not under the care of an ENT Consultant, we can arrange for you to be seen, often in the same week, by one of the ENT team who will explore any medical aspects of the hearing loss and guide you to other services which may help. At Dublin Audiology, we can:
- monitor your hearing levels
- provide information and counselling about your hearing loss
- recommend hearing aids, communication strategies and ways to maximise your existing hearing
- direct you to other services, e.g. Speech and Language Therapy, Education services as needed

What is an Audiologist?

An Audiologist is a healthcare professional qualified to assess, identify and manage the non-medical aspects of hearing loss, tinnitus and balance disorders in adults, children and infants.

What is an Audiogram?

An audiogram is a graph used to display of what you can hear. The softest sounds you can hear are called your hearing threshold levels and these are marked on the audiogram. The audiogram shows the type and degree of hearing loss you may have.

What are the different types of hearing loss?

Conductive: this can be caused by blockage or damage in the outer and/or middle ear, e.g. often due to a build up of wax in the ear canal or middle ear fluid behind the ear drum. It leads to a reduction in the loudness of sounds; such a blockage can often be treated medically or surgically.
Sensorineural: this usually results from damage or malfunction of the cochlea (sensory) or the nerve (neural) of the ear. It can be present at or soon after birth (congenital) or acquired later in life. It leads to a loss of loudness as well as a lack of clarity.
Mixed: results when there is a problem in both the conductive pathway and the sensorineural pathway.

What are the different degrees of hearing loss?

Mild: 21-45 dB
You may have some difficulty hearing soft speech during a conversation but would manage in quiet with clear voices. A hearing aid may assist many hearing problems in this range.
Moderate: 46-60 dB
You may have difficulty understanding conversational speech especially in background noise. You are probably noticing that you need to turn up the volume on the TV and radio. Hearing aid/s will assist most hearing difficulties if speech discrimination is good and background noise low.
Moderately severe: 61-75 dB
The clarity of speech you hear may be significantly affected. However, with appropriate training a hearing aid should allow conversational speech to be heard in quiet listening.
Severe: 76-90 dB
Normal conversational speech is inaudible. A hearing aid will amplify many speech sounds. Yet visual cues will assist in understanding speech.
Profound: 91 dB +
There is great inconsistency in the benefit derived from a hearing aid. Some can understand clear speech face to face in places with good auditory conditions when wearing a hearing aid. Others find it impossible.

Why is my hearing loss expressed as a “degree” of hearing loss rather than as a “percentage”?

Decibels (dB) cannot be expressed as a percentage because decibels are not linear units of measurement. Expressing your degree of hearing loss as a percentage is meaningless; using terms such as normal/mild/moderate/severe/profound is appropriate when describing your hearing levels.

My child is too young to wear headphones. How will you test his/her hearing?

If your child is too young to wear headphones, we will perform the hearing test through loud speakers rather than headphones. This is called “sound field” audiometry. It does not test each separately; if there is a difference in hearing between each ear, sound field audiometry produces an audiogram reflecting the ear with better hearing.

Find us on the map

Call us, email us or drop in to arrange an appointment!

Visit our Office

Dublin Audiology
Medical Consulting Rooms
12 Berkeley Road
Dublin 7

Phone us for a hearing test

Mobile: 0831234048
Tel: 018828503
Fax: 018307562

Email us for a hearing test

info@dublinaudiology.ie