Hearing Loss Treatment – A Stitch in Time Saves Nine!

Loss of hearing may happen suddenly or gradually. The degree and the severity depend on the causative factor. The ear constitutes of outer, middle and inner ear. Loss of hearing can occur due to impairment affection of any of these regions.

Congenital anomaly is one of the very common reasons of hearing loss. Due to improper formation of the ear, o r the outer ear, the sound waves are not collected properly and directed with-in, which is a very common cause for healing loss in cases of defect y birth, in congenital anomaly. This can be treated surgically. It is bets that a child with congenital hearing loss receives appropriate treatment within 6 months of age. Hearing is necessary to understand language, development of speech and also overall development and mental development. Children treated at an early age are guided to develop communication skill.

Loss of hearing is of two basic types. They are Conductive and Sensorineural hearing loss. Conductive hearing loss occurs due to failure of proper conduction of sound waves to the inner ear. Some of the common causes are excess accumulation of wax in the ear (Cerumen), or any infection to the external ear, pressure changes experience by the tympanic membrane (Very common during a journey to high altitudes or a tunnel), Otitis media, or any ear infection, when the Eustachian tube is blocked etc. Some conductive hearing loss that occurs due to any ailment or due to temporary conditions or wax can be reversed and treated. Other conductive conditions can be treated with hearing aid, and if it does not improve, surgery is recommended.

Sensorineural hearing loss occurs due to any severe infectious disease, or sometimes is idiopathic in nature (Unknown cause). Age is also one of a common cause of this type of reduced sensitivity to hearing. Hearing aids and cochlear implants are used to treat sensorineural defect.

Besides these basic types there is also hearing impairment due to insensitive to certain frequencies of sound. In this type of impairment, digitally manufactured aids are effective. Some people sow insensitivity to higher frequency of sounds, and are incapable of hearing these. Use of digital hearing aids helps this selective deafness. Some type of deafness is caused due to exposure to loud noises, thereby causing damage to the hair cells.

In such cases the first and foremost step that is to be taken is keeping away from the preventive cause. These noise induced defects van be effectively prevented by special types of earplugs that decrease the intensity of exposure to sound by more than 20 decibels. People who listen to music on earphones for long, work in heavy machinery can take precaution to avoid hearing loss due to loud noise. We all are aware that ‘Prevention is better than cure’.