SPEECH LANGUAGE THERAPY & AUDIOLOGY

According to the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), one in ten Americans has a communication disorder. This disorder can be the result of a stroke, undetected hearing loss, stuttering problem, head Injury, language disorder, or other disorders or conditions, such as cerebral palsy, cleft palate, mental retardation, faulty learning, or emotional problems.

Audiologists prevent, identify, assess, and treat hearing problems including balance and other neural problems. Hearing disorders can occur for a variety of reasons. Trauma at birth, viral Infections, genetic disorders, exposure to loud noise, or aging are common causes. Audiologists examine and clean the ear canal, fit and dispense hearing aids, and offer Instruction In speech or lip reading. They utilize audiometers, computers, and other testing devices which measure levels at which sound Is audible, the ability to distinguish between sounds, and the nature and extent of hearing loss.