Over 40 million people suffer from one hearing condition or the other in the United States alone. Most of these people barely even know if they suffer from the condition or they deliberately ignore it. This situation is the same worldwide, with many people suffering from one hearing problem or the other with a range between mild to severe. Hearing loss can occur on one ear or both ears and is a gradual process that can develop at any age. It is, however, more rampant for people between the ages of 65 and 74. There are three major types of hearing loss, and we shall now consider them.

SENSORINEURAL HEARING LOSS

Responsible for over 90% hearing loss globally, the Sensorineural hearing loss condition is the most common of the three hearing conditions to affect hearing. Hearing loss occurs when there is damage to the ear’s inner structures or the nerve (auditory nerve) connecting the ear to the brain. For adults, this condition is permanent, and they may need a hearing aid assistant to help restore hearing. The causes of sensorineural hearing loss differ between age groups; hence some can be treated while some will have to be managed. The causes include Aging, Head trauma, Exposure to loud noise, Hereditary, Tumors, Meniere’s disease e.t.c.

Sensorineural Hearing Loss Treatments:

In most cases concerning sensorineural hearing condition, the problem is likely irreversible as no treatment has been developed to repair damaged sensory hair cells. However, some cases are reversible. Using corticosteroids can help restore hearing if the cause of audio loss is caused by loud noise, which led to inflammation or swelling in the cochlea hair cells. Diuretics diet and corticosteroid can treat Fluctuating ear loss caused by the Meniere disease.

CONDUCTIVE HEARING LOSS

Unlike the ear’s more sensitive inner structures, this hearing loss is caused by damage to the outer and middle ear. Fortunately, most of the issues resulting from this condition are curable. People with conductive hearing conditions do not hear soft sounds while high pitch noise sounds muffled; this happens because there is a blockage or damage to the ear’s outer or middle part. These affected areas can be the eardrum, ear canal, or middle ear. This condition is the primary cause of hearing loss in one ear. Most of the causes leading to conductive hearing loss and their results are mostly treatable. Some of them include storage of wax in the ear canal, chronic Infection, Allergies, Fluid in the middle ear from colds, Perforated eardrum, Infection in the ear canal, Benign tumors, Foreign object in the ear, Impacted earwax, e.t.c.

Conductive hearing loss treatments:

For hearing loss caused by mild and chronic infections, antifungals or antibiotics can treat the function. Using surgical procedures can help treat most of the problems that are harder to deal with medically. For irreversible cases, either medically or surgically, a hearing aid should be administered to the patient.

MIXED HEARING LOSS

Mixed hearing loss is a condition in which the hearing loss has elements or characteristics of both sensorineural loss and conductive hearing loss simultaneously. As already stated, for the inner ear problem, the condition may not be irreversible. At the same time, those of the conductive may respond to medical and surgical treatments, and if irreversible, can be corrected with a hearing aid. For the mixed hearing loss causes, all of the causes that led to both the conductive and sensorineural hearing conditions are also responsible for the mixed hearing condition. Mixed hearing loss treatment: treatments for mixed hearing loss are the same for those discussed on both conductive and sensorineural hearing loss. However, audiologists advise that treatment should be first administered on the conductive cause before moving to the inner ear structures. We can see that the ear is a sensitive organ and should only be handled by expert hands when hearing related problem is noticed. You can reach out to an ear specialist by searching ENT doctors near me on the internet and book an appointment with any convenient directory on the list. However, suppose you prefer trusted and experienced doctors that will increase your chances of getting your ear back to normal. In that case, you can visit us at South Florida ENT Associates located at the Palm Beach gardens, Florida, United States. Or you can book an appointment with Dr. Jared Langerman, an ENT specialist with over seven years of experience, through his LinkedIn account.