Hearing Loss
Discover the signs of hearing loss
and why it’s important to seek treatment.
How We Hear
How we hear involves a complex system. It’s important to understand how the ears work and translate sound in order to properly diagnose hearing loss and find a suitable treatment option. How we hear is broken into a few parts.
- First sound is transmitted through the air as sound waves. The sound waves are collected by the outer ear and sent down the ear canal to the eardrum.
- These sound waves cause the eardrum to vibrate, setting the three bones of the ear into motion.
- The motion of these tiny bones causes fluid in the inner ear, cochlea, to move.
- The movement of this fluid in the inner ear causes the hair cells in the cochlea to bend and change into electrical impulses.
- These electrical impulses are transmitted to the hearing nerve and sent up to the brain where they are interpreted into sound.
What Is Hearing Loss?
Hearing loss is simply defined as the inability to hear sounds. Approximately 48 million people in the United States experience hearing loss to some degree. Many people experience high frequency hearing loss, which makes it harder to hear high-pitched sounds.
Hearing loss affects more than just your communication. When left untreated, hearing loss can lead to social isolation, forgetfulness, listening fatigue, and even cognitive decline which can lead to dementia. It’s important to be proactive about your hearing health by avoiding loud sounds, wearing hearing protection when necessary, and having your hearing checked on a regular basis.
Signs of Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss, which is the most common type of loss, often occurs gradually, over the course of a few years. For this reason, it can be difficult to recognize the signs until it’s too late. If you have noticed any combination of the following, you should schedule an appointment for a hearing exam.
- Sounds seem muffled or unclear
- You have trouble hearing voices in background noise
- It seems like people mumble
- Women and children’s voices are harder to hear
- You frequently ask people to repeat themselves
- You mishear information
- You hear a ringing in your ears when quiet (tinnitus)
Hearing Loss and Health
Hearing health is connected to whole health. Our ears rely on healthy blood flow to function properly. Certain health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure can all have an affect on hearing. If your ears aren’t receiving the proper blood flow due to one of these health conditions, then hearing loss can happen as a result.
If you have an underlying health condition, it’s necessary to have your hearing checked on an annual basis. Catching the signs of hearing loss early will ensure your loss doesn’t worsen and you don’t lose any of your speech comprehension.
Tinnitus
Have you ever heard a sound that wasn’t really there? Or your ears ringing after a concert? These are all signs of tinnitus. Tinnitus is when you hear phantom sounds in your ears or head when no external sounds are present. Tinnitus itself is not a disease, but rather a symptom of another underlying problem. Causes of tinnitus include:
- Hearing loss
- Loud noise exposure
- Stress
- Ototoxic medications
- Earwax build-up
- Meniere’s disease
If your ears won’t stop ringing, you should schedule a visit for a hearing exam. We offer tinnitus masking hearing aids that can play soothing sounds in your ears, distracting your brain from tinnitus.
Hearing Aid Screener
When is it time to make an appointment with Pacific Audiology Clinic? This simple quiz can help get you started on your path to understanding your hearing health. If any of the five indicators below line up with your personal experience, then it might be time to make an appointment.