Rinne and Weber test

The Weber test is a test for lateralization:

1. The examiner strikes a tuning fork strongly on their palm or knee,
2. then presses the butt of the instrument on the top of the patient's head in the midline
3. with their other hand, the examiner exerts counter pressure on the back of the patient's head
4. the patient is then asked to indicate whether he can feel it louder on the left, right, or center.
   

If the person can hear the sound louder in the healthy ear, then the person has sensorineural hearing loss; if the person perceives the louder sound in their affected ear, then the person has conductive hearing loss.

• The examiner strikes a tuning fork, then they place it approximately 2 cm away from the external auditory meatus.
• After 2-3 seconds, the base of the fork is pressed against the mastoid, using the examiner's other hand to provide contralateral counterpressure.
• The patient is then asked which sound was perceived the loudest.

If the patient hears the sound with the tuning fork in place, but not while it is held close, the problem is in the outer or middle ear ( conductive hearing loss). If the patient does not respond to either stimuli, the problem is in the receptors or auditory pathways ( sensorineural hearing loss).