About Hearing Loss

Eight out of 10 adult patients with complaints of hearing problems cannot benefit from medical or surgical treatment, but they can benefit from properly fitted hearing aids.

Hearing loss in adults generally is a non-medical problem-meaning that in the majority of cases, medical or surgical treatment will not provide relief to patients. Published studies conducted by the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and by ear-nose-and-throat (ENT) physicians at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, have confirmed that approximately 80% of adult patients with complaints of hearing loss cannot benefit from medical prescription or surgical treatment. The majority of patients with hearing loss can be fully and most appropriately served by the local hearing aid clinician. The 20 percent of patients with medically or surgically treatable conditions are easily identified by the neighborhood hearing aid clinician for referral to the otolaryngologist (ear physician). Elimination of multiple office visits to see physicians and specialists is a recognized cost savings to the patient.

Types of Hearing Problems

Conductive Hearing Loss: Sound isn’t conducted properly from the outer or middle ear to the inner ear.

Otosclerosis: This is a conductive type loss in which the tiny bones of the middle ear no longer transmit sound properly from the eardrum to the inner ear.

Sensori-Neural Hearing Loss: The inner ear is unable to properly transmit sound to the brain. The hair cells inside the ear (especially those for high frequency hearing) have withered due to age, noise or medications, and no longer pick up sounds properly. This kind of loss is permanent since hair cells do not grow back.

Presbycusis: This is the most common type of sensori-neural hearing loss. It comes with aging. The ability to hear high-frequency sounds (such as consonant sounds) deteriorates. In females this gradual deterioration begins at about age 37. In men it begins at about age 32.

Take a hearing self-evaluation.