Weber test uses which instrument?

• A. Tuning fork
• B. Stethoscope
• C. Thermometer
• D. Otoscope

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that the Weber test uses bone conduction with a tuning fork to see where a sound is heard better. By placing a vibrating tuning fork on the forehead (the midline), the patient should hear the tone in both ears. If one ear has a conductive hearing problem, that ear tends to hear the sound louder because bone conduction bypasses the outer/middle ear issues, so the sound lateralizes to that ear. If one ear has a sensorineural loss, the tone is heard best in the other, normal ear. That’s why the instrument used is a tuning fork. The other tools listed aren’t used for this test: a stethoscope is for listening to heart and lungs, a thermometer measures temperature, and an otoscope is for looking into the ear canal and tympanic membrane.