Scans & Tests · Glue ear

Scans and tests your GP or consultant may recommend for Glue ear

This is information about which scans and tests may be used to assess Glue ear, and what each one is: not a recommendation. Your clinician decides which scan or test, if any, you need. Prices below are typical UK private ranges; enter your postcode to see the NHS wait near you.

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Examination first

Glue ear is diagnosed by examining the ear, often with an otoscope that can show fluid behind the eardrum.

Hearing test

A hearing test, usually with tympanometry (which measures how the eardrum moves), confirms glue ear and how much it is affecting hearing. It is a test, not a scan.

Pure-tone audiometry measures the quietest sounds you can hear across a range of pitches, played through headphones. It is a test rather than an imaging scan.

How long: Usually 20 to 40 minutes.

Good for: Measuring the type and degree of hearing loss.

Privately: Private hearing tests are widely available.

Sources: NICE (NG98), NHS. [1] (opens in new tab)

See the wait and price near you

Enter your postcode for the NHS wait at your nearest hospital and the private price range from clinics within 25 miles.

All conditions, scans and tests →MRI waits by hospital →All NHS waiting times →

Wait or Pay is independent and is not the NHS. NHS waits are from DM01 diagnostics data. Nothing here is medical advice; your clinician decides which scan, if any, you need.

How long will you really wait, and how could you go sooner?

Your free dashboard compares all four paths for Glue ear: wait, switch to a faster NHS hospital, part-private, or fully private. It names the faster hospitals near you, shows what going private would cost, and gives you letters ready to send. You can print it or save it as a PDF. Free, and nothing is locked or paid.

See your free wait-or-pay dashboard→