Which of the following describes sensorineural hearing loss on an audiogram?

• A. AC: Normal; BC: Normal; No air-bone gap
• B. AC: Abnormal; BC: Abnormal; No air-bone gap
• C. AC: Abnormal; BC: Normal; Air-bone gap present
• D. AC: Abnormal; BC: Abnormal; No air-bone gap

Answer: (B)

Sensorineural hearing loss shows elevated thresholds on both air conduction and bone conduction, with no air-bone gap. This means the inner ear or auditory nerve is the site of the problem, so testing the full pathway (air conduction) and the direct inner-ear pathway (bone conduction) both show loss, and the difference between them isn’t large. The key clue is that there isn’t a gap between AC and BC thresholds; a gap would point to a middle-ear (conductive) component, or a mixed loss if BC is also elevated. So the pattern described—AC abnormal, BC abnormal, and no air-bone gap—best fits sensorineural hearing loss.