About Hearing Loss
Hearing loss is popularly associated with advanced age. Though your chances of hearing loss do increase with age, a surprisingly high percentage of people with hearing loss are much younger than you’d think. Traffic, machinery, music, and TV all contribute to noisy environments that can cause hearing loss – at any age. Hearing loss is not uncommon
More than 500 million people worldwide suffer from some degree of hearing loss. You might be one of them. If you are, a hearing aid can help you regain your hearing so you can live the life you’re used to.
- Signs and Symptoms
- Types and causes of hearing loss
- What does hearing loss mean?
- Treating hearing loss
- What can I do?
Signs and Symptoms
Have the birds stopped singing?Everyday sounds are part of life’s most meaningful experiences. Are you having difficulty hearing the sound of a purring cat? Or the crisp crunch of snow under your boot on a cold winter morning? Or birds singing in your garden?
If so, there’s a chance you have hearing loss. |
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Develops graduallyHearing loss usually develops gradually – so gradually that you don’t notice the loss of these subtle everyday sounds. Before you know it, you could start missing the important sounds in your everyday life, such as the voices of loved ones..
Of course, you may not think your hearing loss is severe enough to worry about. But however mild your hearing loss might be, you’ll find that your life will greatly improve by doing something about the problem. |
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Do you have hearing loss?How do you find out whether you have a hearing loss? Take our online test to get an indication. It only takes a minute.
For a complete hearing evaluation you need to visit one of our offices.
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Types and Causes of hearing loss
There are many kinds of hearing loss, but most fall into two categories: sensorineural or conductive .
Sensorineural hearing loss
This is the most common type of hearing loss. Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by damage to the tiny hair cells in the ear that help transmit sound to your brain. These can bend or break due to:
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Exposure to very loud noises
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Genetic disposition
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Virus infections in the inner ear
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Certain medical treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation
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Head injury
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Age
The effects are almost always the same – it becomes harder to distinguish speech from noise, certain high-pitched sounds such as birdsong disappear altogether, people seem to be mumbling and you often have to ask them to repeat themselves.
Sensorineural hearing loss is permanent and can’t be corrected medically, but a hearing aid can almost always help.
Conductive hearing loss
This is caused by any blockage that prevents sound reaching the inner ear. This might include:
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A build-up of earwax
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Fluid in the middle ear
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Unusual bone growth in the middle ear
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Middle ear infections
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Small holes in the eardrum
Conductive hearing loss is not necessarily permanent and can often be corrected medically or surgically.
Mixed hearing loss
It is possible that you may suffer from both types of hearing loss. This condition is called mixed hearing loss . Mixed hearing loss can be helped with surgery and a hearing aid.
What does hearing loss Mean?
Your hearing is measured in a scale of decibels (dB) compared to ‘normal’ hearing. This scale is used to evaluate whether you have hearing loss, and if so, to what degree.
During your hearing examination, your hearing care professional will test your hearing and present the results in an audiogram (see below).
Levels of hearing loss
This scale shows different levels of hearing loss (HL).
Normal hearing (<25dB HL)
Mild (26-40dB HL)
You have trouble hearing or understanding soft speech and whispers, or speech over background noise
Moderate (41-55 dB HL)
You have trouble hearing or understanding regular speech up close or regular speech in a quiet office environment
Moderately severe (56-70 dB HL)
You have trouble hearing or understanding everyday conversations or a telephone ringing
Severe (71-90 dB HL)
You can only hear loud sounds such as very loud speech, sirens or a door slamming
Profound (90+ dB HL)
You have trouble hearing sounds such as a motorbike or power tools
The audiogram
This is a typical audiogram for a person with normal hearing:
Treating hearing loss
Wearing a hearing aid means rediscovering the pleasure of gathering with friends and family, feeling more confident at work, and enjoying films, music and TV programs. A hearing aid means living with all of your five senses again.
No reason to waitDelaying tough decisions is a natural reaction, but confronting hearing loss quickly will make it easier to deal with. The longer you leave it, the harder it is for your brain to comprehend certain sounds because it no longer hears them every day.
A hearing aid prevents this deterioration of your ability to relearn to interpret sounds. |
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Modern hearing aids are discreetToday’s hearing instruments are as small, comfortable and attractive as they are powerful and they have limited impact on your appearance. In fact, most people won’t even notice that you’re wearing one. |
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Take the first stepThe first step towards treating your hearing loss is to visit us at one of our many locations.
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What Can I do?
If you think you may have hearing loss, the first step is to stop in to one of our many locations for a hearing test. The test will reveal whether you have hearing loss and what type it is.
If you have a hearing loss
Should the test diagnose you with a hearing loss or tinnitus, we will let you whether it can be treated with a hearing instrument, and if so, which type of hearing instrument that suits you best.
And if your we suspects you have conductive hearing loss, you’ll be referred to an Ear, Nose and Throat doctor for further examination.
