What is the normal value for hearing tests?

Hearing health, like overall physical health, requires regular assessment. The ears play a vital role in our daily lives and work. Hearing loss can cause numerous difficulties—such as impaired communication and mobility—and may even lead to safety hazards and psychological disorders. Clinically, normal hearing is defined as thresholds of 25 decibels (dB) or better across the frequency range of 500–2000 Hz, which constitutes the speech-frequency range. Among these frequencies—500 Hz, 1000 Hz, and 2000 Hz—their sensitivity is especially critical for everyday verbal communication; thus, monitoring these three frequencies is particularly important. A threshold exceeding 25 dB at any of these frequencies may already begin to interfere with daily communication.

Generally, hearing loss is categorized as follows: mild (25–40 dB), moderate (40–60 dB), severe (60–80 dB), and profound (above 80 dB).

Therefore: First, hearing thresholds of 25 dB or better are considered normal and typically require no intervention. Second, some older adults may exhibit high-frequency hearing loss exceeding 25 dB—particularly above 2000 Hz—but such loss usually has minimal impact on daily speech communication and thus does not necessitate clinical concern. However, if hearing thresholds exceed 25 dB within the critical speech-frequency range of 500–2000 Hz, this warrants prompt clinical attention.