About Hearing Loss
Causes of Hearing Loss
If you have a hearing loss, you may wonder what caused it. It is often not possible to determine a cause with high certainty. Your history and the results of your hearing evaluation will help provide information.
Age-induced hearing loss:
The most common type of hearing loss is called presbycusis, or age induced hearing loss. This is caused by a gradual deterioration of hair cells, which is part of the normal aging process. The degree to which hair cell loss occurs varies from one individual to another. Some people experience a significant loss of sensory cells at the age of 50, while others only have a negligible loss even at the age of 80. Hearing problems associated with presbycusis can be significantly reduced with the right hearing device.
Noise-induced hearing loss:
Another, less common type of hearing loss is noise induced, arising from an acoustic trauma or from exposure to excessive noise for extended periods of time. This causes damage to both the inner and outer hair cells of the cochlea. People with noise-induced hearing loss typically have difficulty hearing high frequency sounds, but hear quite well in the low frequencies. Hearing devices are ideal solutions for noise induced hearing loss.
Types of Hearing Loss
When sound is stopped for whatever reason the brain can no longer process the information accurately. Sound can be muffled, softer, even distorted. Learn more
This type of hearing loss is the most common type of hearing loss. More than 90 percent of all hearing instrument wearers have sensorineural hearing loss. Learn more
This kind of hearing loss is caused by a combination of problems in the middle and the inner ear or the auditory nerve. Learn more
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