Hearing Loss: An Ultimate Guide.
Hearing loss is when a person loses their ability to hear sounds normally in the same way as others might be able to. This can happen in either one or both ears. Generally, a person is considered to be hearing impaired when they have trouble hearing sounds of 20 decibels or louder, which is around the volume of rustling leaves or a whisper from a distance.
Causes Of Hearing Loss
– Ageing-related hearing loss
– Noise damage
– Injury, illness, and allergies
– Congenital hearing loss ( Can add shutter stock images to the above)
Severity Of Hearing loss
Hearing loss range
Mild hearing loss: 26 to 40 dB
Difficulty hearing rustling leaves, whispers, humming of a refrigerator
Moderate hearing loss: 41 to 55 dB
Difficulty hearing light rainfall
Moderately severe hearing loss: 56 to 70 dB
Difficulty hearing normal conversations, toilet flushing, vacuum cleaner
Severe hearing loss: 71 to 90 dB
Difficulty hearing heavy traffic, hair dryer
Profound hearing loss: Over 90 dB
Difficulty or complete inability in hearing extremely loud noises like ambulance sirens, helicopters, drills.
Hearing Loss Types
Hearing loss is classified into 3 types by medical professionals:
• Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common type of permanent hearing loss. This happens when the inner part of the ear or auditory nerves experience damage, which affects the transmission of sounds from the ears to the brain. As a result, soft sounds such as normal conversations become difficult to hear, with loud noises also becoming muffled, depending on the degree of hearing impairment.
• Conductive Hearing Loss
Conductive hearing loss happens when there are obstructions in the middle and/or outer ear, which partially blocks how sound waves travel through to the brain. This could be due to ear wax, fluid due to infection or allergy, growths, or other external factors. Fortunately, conductive hearing loss is usually temporary and depending on its cause, can often be treated with simple medical treatment, surgery, or a hearing aid.
• Mixed Hearing Loss
As its name suggests, mixed hearing loss is a combination of both sensorineural and conductive hearing loss, where there’s damage to both the inner and middle or outer parts of the ears.
