About Hearing Loss
Causes of hearing loss
Causes in the middle ear
Inflammation, fluid behind the eardrum, perforations of the eardrum and Otosclerosis (a stiffening of the bones in the middle ear) are the most common problems to interfere with middle ear function. Most middle ear problems can be addressed effectively with medication or surgery. If this is not possible, the hearing loss can be compensated with a hearing aid.
Causes in the inner ear
The majority of hearing issues concern the inner ear (C). The most common cause is the natural aging process. However, loud noise, certain medication, disease or trauma to the head can have an influence on a person’s hearing ability. These influences damage the fine hair cells and affect the transmission of signals to the auditory nerves. Usually, inner ear hearing loss cannot be addressed medically. However, this type of hearing loss can be corrected with a hearing aid in most cases.
Hearing loss caused by a middle ear defect is called a conductive hearing loss. Damage to the inner ear is called a sensorineural hearing loss. If both types occur together, the condition is called a mixed hearing loss.
What are the different degrees of hearing loss?
Between “hearing well” and “hearing nothing” lies a wide range of hearing loss. Experts distinguish between mild, moderate, severe and profound hearing loss.
The sound of speech: Human speech consists of vowels and consonants at different loudness and frequency levels. They are recorded on the audiogram as a so-called “speech banana”. It is an easy way to check whether the entire spectrum of speech is still audible and how a person’s hearing changes with time.
- Mild hearing loss: Soft noises or speech are not heard. Understanding speech is difficult in a noisy environment.
- Moderate hearing loss: Soft and moderately loud noises are not heard. Understanding speech becomes very difficult if background noise is present.
- Severe hearing loss: Only loud noises are heard. Communication would be significantly impaired.
- Profound hearing loss: Some very loud noises are heard. Without a hearing aid, communication is no longer possible even with intense effort.