Tympanic membrane is the fancy name for eardrum, so when an audiologist wants to find out how an individual’s eardrum is working, he or she may get a tympanogram.

In this test, the audiologist inserts a probe (a foam or rubber tip) into the individual’s ear, for 2-3 seconds.  The probe is attached to a machine which then makes a quiet noise that should get the individual’s eardrum moving.