Hearing loss

July 3, 2020

5 min read

If you've ever wondered how common hearing loss is, you might be surprised to know that an estimated 1 in 8 Americans over the age of 12 have hearing loss affecting both ears. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorder (NIDCD), 2 percent of adults aged 45 to 54 have disabling hearing loss, and among adults aged 55 to 64 that figure jumps to more than 8 percent. Overall, as many as 1 in 5 adults and two-thirds of older adults experience at least some degree of hearing difficulty.

If you suspect a loved one has trouble hearing, or if you're concerned about your own ability to hear, keep reading to learn five key things about this common health issue.

5 Things to Know About Hearing Loss

1. Three Main Kinds of Hearing Loss Exist

Your ability to hear is a result of a complex interaction between multiple structures, chemicals, and pathways in your brain and ears. Any one of these areas can be affected and lead to partial or complete loss of hearing.

The three main types of hearing loss include:

Conductive hearing loss, which occurs when sound waves cannot get through the outer and middle ear
Sensorineural hearing loss, which occurs due to damage to the inner ear structures or nerves that transmit auditory information to the brain from the inner ear
Mixed hearing loss, which occurs due to a combination of conductive and sensorineural hearing loss

2. Symptoms of Hearing Loss Vary

Signs and symptoms of hearing loss may be temporary or permanent, and can include:

Muffling of noises, including speech
Difficulty understanding words or certain parts of words (including consonants), especially while in a crowd or when there are other background noises
Needing to frequently ask others to speak more slowly, clearly, or loudly
Turning up the volume on televisions or other audio and audiovisual devices
Withdrawal and lack of interest from conversations or even the desire to avoid certain social situations

In infants or any person who is unable to tell you when they can't hear well, you may look for signs of hearing loss including:

Lack of startle response to loud noises
Not turning toward a sound after age six months
Delayed speech and langauge (e.g., not saying single words like "mama" or "dada" by age one year)
Turning toward a person only if the person is visible, and not if the person just calls the infant's name or makes noise

3. There are Multiple Risk Factors for Hearing Loss

Hearing loss is a surprisingly common birth defect. As many as 3 out of 1,000 children in the U.S. are born with a detectable level of hearing loss in one or both ears. Even though 90 percent of children born with hearing loss have typically-hearing parents, genes are believed to be a play a role in some cases of deafness.

In addition to genes and family history, other risk factors are known:

Conductive hearing loss may be due to ear infections, benign tumors, holes in the eardrum, and fluid in the middle ear
Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) may be due to illness, drug toxicity, genetic hearing loss, advancing age, listening to loud noise or explosions, trauma to the head, inner ear malformation at birth

Older people and men are also more likely to experience hearing loss.

4. Treatment Can Help

As with any condition, proper diagnosis and a careful rule out of other conditions is an important step of treating hearing loss. Treatment is important, especially for older adults who tend to be most affected by hearing loss. According to The National Council on the Aging (NCOA), untreated hearing loss may increase the risk of depression among elderly people and could serve as a hidden factor in social isolation.

While dependent on your specific needs and situation, your hearing loss treatment may include:

Surgery, including cochlear implants (which improve hearing by directly stimulating the hearing nerve) or insertion of tubes to help drain excess fluid from the inner ear
Removal of wax blockage
Hearing aids
Hearing amplifiers
Audio-visual aids (e.g., closed captioning)

A variety of medical providers may be involved in your or your loved one's hearing loss plan of care, including a physician, ear nose and throat (ENT) specialist (otolaryngologist), audiologist, and speech-language pathologist (SLP).

There is on-going research, including a recent study from USC and Harvard University, investigating ways to restore hearing by repairing cells inside the ear. Some people with partial or complete deafness may also choose to learn sign language or develop the ability to read lips as a way to help them negotiate their daily life with impaired hearing.

5. There Are Ways to Protect Your Hearing and Avoid Hearing Loss

While not all types of hearing loss are preventable, there are things you can do to protect your hearing in your day-to-day life. Here are a few simple tips to keep in mind:

Avoid recurrent, excessive, and/or prolonged exposure to noises over 85 decibels (dB); as a reference, busy traffic ranges from 70 to 85dB, normal conversation is around 60dB, and listening to music through headphones at full volume reaches up to 110dB
Have your hearing examined by your doctor or ask for a referral to a hearing specialist (newborn infantsshould be screened for hearing loss as young as one month old)
Wear appropriate ear protection during activities associated with loud noises
Take frequent breaks from activities associated with loud noises
Try using noise-canceling headphones while listening to music, since this helps amplify sound without forcing you to turn up the volume too loud

Is Hearing Loss Affecting Your Daily Life?

It can be a struggle watching yourself or a loved one lose the ability to hear. Fortunately, support is available through your medical providers and the following resources. As always, we also invite you to meet other people from our Healthread community whose lives are also affected by hearing loss. Reach out today!