About
hearing loss
Hearing loss affects around two out of 10 adults in the UK. Most
of these people are over the age of 60 and have lost their hearing
gradually (presbyacusis), but hearing loss can occur at a younger
age. In the UK, one in every 840 children is born severely or
profoundly deaf each year.
Sound
and the ear
Sound reaches your ear as sound waves, which cause vibrations that
the ear turns into electrical signals. These signals travel to the
brain where they are converted into meaningful information, such
as language or music.
The ear consists of three parts: the outer ear, the
middle ear and the inner ear.
The outer ear is the visible part of your ear. It collects sound,
which then travels down your ear canal (external auditory meatus)
to your eardrum (tympanic membrane).
The sound waves cause your eardrum to vibrate. This vibration is
passed on to the middle ear, which consists of three small bones
called the 'ossicles'. These amplify and conduct the vibrations to
the inner ear.
The inner ear contains the cochlea, which is shaped like a snail
shell. The cochlea is full of fluid and contains tiny hair cells.
The ossicles transmit the vibrations to the fluid inside the
cochlea, causing the hair cells to move. The movement of the hair
cells produces an electrical signal that travels along the
auditory nerve to your brain. Different types of hair cell pick up
different frequencies (pitches) of sound.
Symptoms of hearing loss
If you have hearing loss:
you may be finding it
difficult to hear and understand people when you're in a noisy
place
you may have earache and/or a
continual ringing in your ears
If you have any of these
symptoms, you should see your GP.
Causes of hearing loss
There are many possible causes of hearing loss. These can be
divided into two basic types, called conductive and sensorineural
hearing loss.
Conductive hearing loss
This is caused by anything that stops sound moving from your outer
ear to your inner ear. The following are possible causes of
conductive hearing loss.
Middle ear infections (acute
otitis media).
Collection of fluid in the
middle ear - 'glue ear' (otitis media with effusion).
Blockage of the outer ear,
usually by wax.
Otosclerosis, a condition
where the ossicles of the middle ear harden and become less able
to vibrate.
Damage to the ossicles, for
example by serious infection or head injury.
Perforated (pierced) eardrum,
which can be caused by an untreated ear infection (chronic
suppurative otitis media), head injury or a blow to the ear, or
from poking something in your ear.
Sensorineural
hearing loss
This is caused by damage to the pathway between the inner ear and
the brain. It affects sound intensity and makes it more difficult
for you to recognise complex sounds.
The following are some possible causes.
Age-related hearing loss (presbyacusis).
This is a natural decline in your hearing. Many people get this
as they get older because of damage to the hair cells in the
cochlea.
Damage to the hair cells by
loud noises (acoustic trauma). This is more likely to happen if
you work in a noisy place.
Certain infections such as
measles, mumps or meningitis.
Ménière's disease, which
causes hearing loss, dizziness and tinnitus (a persistent
ringing in the ears).
Certain medicines, such as
some powerful antibiotics, can cause permanent hearing loss. At
high doses, aspirin is thought to cause temporary hearing loss
and tinnitus.
Certain cancer treatments,
such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, can cause hearing
loss.
Acoustic neuroma. This is a
benign (non-cancerous) tumour affecting the auditory nerve
causing deafness and tinnitus.
Cholesteatoma (benign skin
growth) in the middle ear, causing deafness and vertigo
(sensation of movement when you're standing still).
Mixed hearing loss is a
combination of conductive and sensorineural hearing loss.
Diagnosis of hearing loss
In adults, hearing loss may be very gradual, as in age-related
hearing loss, or it can be very sudden, as in some viral
infections of the inner ear. If you, your friends or your family
think that your hearing is getting worse, you should see your GP.
If you have sudden hearing loss in one or both ears, you should
seek immediate advice.
Your GP will ask you about your symptoms and examine you. He or
she may also ask you about your medical history.
Your GP will want to know how your hearing loss has developed and
what sort of problems it causes. He or she may then perform a
hearing test or refer you to either an otolaryngologist (a doctor
who specialises in ear, nose and throat disorders); an audiologist
(a specialist in hearing) or an audiovestibular physician (a
doctor who specialises in hearing, balance and communication
problems).
Hearing tests
You may have the following tests.
Whispered speech test. Your GP
will whisper a combination of numbers and letters behind you and
check if you can hear anything by asking you to repeat the
combination. Your GP will probably move further away from you
each time to test the range of your hearing.
Tuning fork test. Different
tuning forks can be used to test your hearing at a variety of
frequencies. They can also help determine the type of hearing
loss.
Pure tone audiometry. An
audiometer produces sounds of different volumes and frequencies.
During the test, you're asked to indicate when you hear a sound
in the headphones. The level at which you can't hear a sound of
a certain frequency is known as your threshold.
If your hearing loss has a
sensorineural cause, a number of tests can be performed to
pinpoint where the problem lies.
If your hearing loss has a
sensorineural cause, a number of tests can be performed to
pinpoint where the problem lies.
Otoacoustic emissions. This is
used to measure your cochlear function by recording signals
produced by the hair cells.
Auditory brainstem response.
This measures the activity of the cochlea, auditory nerve and
brain when a sound is heard.
If your GP thinks your hearing
loss is due to an acoustic neuroma or cholesteatoma, a magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) scan of your head may be recommended.
Treatment of hearing loss Self-help
You can make it easier to hear and understand people by:
making sure there is light on
the face of the person you're talking to, so you can see their
lips moving
sitting close to the person
you're talking to
sitting so that your better
ear is close to the person you're talking to
Medicines
If you have a bacterial infection of the middle ear, it can be
treated with antibiotics. Always ask your doctor for advice and
read the patient information leaflet that comes with your
medicine.
Non-surgical treatments
If your outer or middle ears are blocked by ear wax, a nurse will
be able to remove the blockage with a syringe.
If there is no cure for your hearing loss, a hearing aid for one
or both ears may help. Hearing aids can work for both conductive
or sensorineural hearing loss. Many different types of hearing aid
are available, and your audiologist will advise you as to which
type best suits your needs.
Surgery
Perforated eardrums usually heal by themselves, but if you have a
large perforation you may need to have surgery to repair it.
An acoustic neuroma or cholesteatoma can be removed by surgery.
Ossicles affected by otosclerosis can be treated with surgery.
When a hearing aid doesn't give enough sound amplification (eg in
profound deafness), a cochlear implant - sometimes known as a
bionic ear - may help. This device turns sound into an electrical
signal that travels, via electrodes implanted in your cochlea to
your auditory nerve, allowing you to hear sound. Cochlear implants
work well in most people.
Growing Stronger, Growing
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Loud music can
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