Causes of Hearing Loss

Hearing loss can be caused by age, heredity, drugs, disease, injury or constant subjection to loud noises. Around age 15, we begin to lose the acute hearing we had as a child, especially in the higher frequencies. In old age, further hearing is lost due o changes in the hair cells of the organs of hearing, due to either heredity, maternal rubella or drugs taken during pregnancy. About 1000 of all children are born deaf. Injury to the eardrum or to the small bones of the inner ear are also common causes of deafness. For more information on hearing loss, consult a physician in your area.

Types of Hearing Aid Devices

There are many models of hearing aids on the market with different features for various types of hearing impairment. It is important to choose a hearing aid designed for one's specific hearing problem, as well as one that is comfortable and convenient. The most expensive hearing aid on the market may not be the best one for every individual. Check several styles and brands before choosing a model. Extra features usually add to the cost of the hearing aid and may not be necessary. When purchasing, look for clear sound quality and easily operated controls. Buy a hearing aid from only a reputable dealer who will make adjustments, maintenance, repair and a warranty. Look for hearing aid dealers that offer a free trial period to test out different hearing aids before purchasing.

Surgical Restoration

Research is ongoing to restore hearing through different surgical procedures. One of the procedures that has seen success is the cochlear implant. During that procedure, electrodes are implanted in the inner ear to bypass the damaged part of the ear and stimulate the auditory nerve. The operation has been performed on adults since 1985 and has just recently been approved for children. The implant does not allow people to hear as if they had not hearing problems but it does allow the person to distinguish different sounds and voices. For more information on this surgical technique or other new surgical developments, please contact a physician in your area.

Aging and Hearing Loss

A certain degree of hearing loss is a natural consequence of aging. Every year, after age 50, people lose some of their hearing ability. Hearing impairment can result in confusion and embarrassment. Often, person who cannot hear well withdraw from social situations when they have trouble interacting. This may lead family members to believe that senility is setting in when in reality, their loved one is having difficulty hearing. Fortunately, there are some treatments in un-intrusive hearing aid devices available. Common signs of hearing impairment include difficulty understanding spoken words, difficulty hearing common sounds like a dripping faucet, or a hissing or ringing noise is heard frequently. Persons who have any of these symptoms should see a doctor or hearing specialist.

Diagnosed Hearing Loss

Hearing loss is a gradual process and can become quite severe before a person will seek help. Signs of hearing loss include difficulty understanding spoken words, or they sound slurred or mumbled, a continual hissing or ringing noise in the ear, common sounds like a dripping faucet can be heard or social situations, television and concerts are less enjoyable because much goes unheard. Small children with hearing problems may be slow learning to speak and may need visual stimulation to respond instead of responding to voices. Persons with have any of these symptoms should see a doctor.

Types of Hearing Aids

There are a number of hearing aids available. Work with you audiologist to determine which is best for you. There is the behind the ear model, which contains a microphone, speaker, and amplifier in a curved case behind the ear. A short, plastic tube connects from the case to your ear. The most popular hearing aids are in-the-ear models. These are customized to fit your ear with smaller components for the aid, volume control, and battery. In the canal models fir entirely in the ear canal and are barely seen from the outside. There are also new programmable hearing aids which are adjusted with a computer to compensate for an individual's particular hearing loss. To find out more about hearing aids available to you to meet your hearing needs, consult a professional audiologist.

Self Test for Hearing Loss

In some people, hearing deteriorates with age. About one-fourth of those over 55 have some sort of hearing loss, about 22 million people in America have impaired hearing. The need to turn up the television so loud it annoys others, straining to hear conversations, loss of hearing in one ear, having trouble understanding other people who sound like they are mumbling, the realization that the act of hearing leaves you tired and frustrated are all signals that you need your hearing checked. Ear infections, dizziness, or ringing sound are also signs you need a check up. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, see a professional audiologist for a hearing evaluation or consult your physician for help and guidance.

Consider Getting an Ear Examination

The Food and Drug Administration recommends that you have your ears examined by a licensed physician. Ear examinations are universally recommended by the medical community to ensure there are no underlying diseases or medical problems causing the hearing loss. A hearing loss may be a symptom of another medical problem that needs a doctor's attention. Also, the cause and severity of hearing loss varies widely from person to person.

Testing for Hearing Loss

If a hearing loss is suspected, an appointment with a hearing health care professional should be made for the purposes of testing and evaluation. These services are available from the following professionals: Audiologists; Ear, Nose and Throat Specialists; General Physicians; Hearing Instrument Practioners; Otolaryngologists and Otologists. After the age of 50, a regular hearing test should be considered as important as one's yearly physical checkup. Many individuals remind themselves to have these important checkups by scheduling them around their birthday, an easy way to remember. Testing is painless, comfortable and safe. Basically, it consists of answering questions about your hearing health, recognizing everyday words at different volume levels, and identifying different sounds. Your ability to hear each tone, or frequency produces a unique hearing pattern which is recorded on a audiogram. The hearing health professional then uses the audiogram to determine the type and severity of the hearing loss. These tests should help determine whether a hearing loss is best treated medically, or with hearing aids.

Digital Hearing Aids

The new digital hearing aid is a computer which has been miniaturized into a chip to fit into a hearing instrument for the ear. The digital hearing aid samples the incoming sound signal one million times per second, pre-processes it, and feeds the signal 32,000 times per second to a digital signal processors. It analyzes the sound reproduces those signals at a comfortable loudness for you. Soft sounds are made loud enough to hear and loud sounds are made comfortable. The hear aid automatically adjusts itself without volume controls or remote controls. Digital microchip technology provides more accurate sound reproduction and much better understanding of voices in the midst of background noise.