COVER STORY continued
Important Hearing Loss
How do I know that I may have a hearing loss?
Common signs that may suggest that
YOU have hearing difficulty are:
- You may feel that people are always mumbling, or notice that you only hear parts of conversations or stories when people are talking.
- You often ask people to repeat what they said.
- Other people tell you that you seem to have difficulty hearing or that you play the TV or radio too loud.
- You can’t hear the telephone ring or the caller speaking clearly.
- You are reluctant to participate at family functions and in group situations because you can’t follow conversation to the extent that it is affecting your quality of life.
How do I know that my child may have a hearing loss?
Possible signs that may suggest YOUR CHILD has a hearing loss are:
- Your child’s speech is unclear and/or difficult to understand.
- Your child’s vocabulary is less than other children his age.
- Your child does not respond when you call him; does not hear household sounds heard by other members of the family or needs the sound of the TV or radio,
- etc. turned up too high to hear well.
- Your child does not follow directions and/or needs several repetitions before doing so.
- Your child often says “Huh?”
- Your child does not appear to respond appropriately unless looking directly at you.
If you have concerns, you should consult
a hearing health professional. If you
need to seek help for your child, be sure
to look for a licensed/certified audiologist
experienced in pediatric testing, particularly
if your child is very young (e.g.
under the age of 5 years).
Why do my ears sometime “ring”? Can
anything be done about it?
The medical term for “ringing in the
ears” is called tinnitus. Sometimes it is
perceived as hissing, whooshing, clicking
or some other type of noise. It can occur
in one or both ears and may or may not
be related to hearing loss. You should see
your physician to rule out any potential
underlying medical condition (e.g.
related to medications, blood pressure,
etc.) or dietary habit (e.g. excessive caffeine)
as a contributing factor. Note that
tinnitus can often be related to excessive
noise exposure. It is important to use ear
protection if working around high levels
of noise e.g. construction and not expose
your ears to unnecessarily loud noise or
music which can damage your hearing
and cause tinnitus.
What can I do to protect my ears
and hearing?
It is easy to take our hearing, along with
our other senses, for granted. Practicing
a few safety measures will help to protect
your ears and hearing:
- Avoid excessively loud noise, whether work or socially related. Check with your employer regarding any existing safety recommendations for ear protection in the workplace. Be sure to “turn down the sound”: don’t self induce hearing loss with exposure to excessively loud music. Wear ear protection during recreational activities that may involve high level sound, e.g. snowboarding.
- Avoid moving cotton swabs around in your ears. While use of cotton swabs is practical for drying and removing wax from the exterior portion of the ears, many people insert them too deeply and actually increase any existing wax problem by pushing it in further. If you tend to build a lot of ear wax, see your doctor to have the wax removed professionally and/or be advised regarding safe wax removal methods.
- Do not insert foreign objects in your ears such as toothpicks, hairpins, etc. in attempts to clean the ears. This may damage the lining of the ear canal or worse, rupture your eardrum, which will certainly result in pain and some degree of hearing loss.
If I need a hearing aid, why is it better to
wear two hearing aids instead of just
one?
We normally hear with two ears, which
allows us to localize sounds, hear better
in noisy surroundings, hear the softest
sounds and experience an overall “natural”
sound quality. Given hearing loss in
both ears, most people can understand
better with two aids than with one. Your
hearing healthcare specialist will advise
you regarding appropriate options.
What should users of new hearing aids
realistically expect?
When wearing hearing aids it is important
to be realistic and patient. Hearing
aids do not claim to restore your hearing
to “normal” and may not allow you to
hear perfectly in every listening situation.
Familiar sounds such as birds, turning
the pages of your newspaper or even your
own voice or footsteps may be strange to
you initially because you have not been
used to fully hearing these things for
some time. It may take a while to adjust
to your new hearing aids and realize your
full potential.
What is hearing loss?
Every day we hear sounds ranging from a
low-pitched foghorn to that of a highpitched
squeal. We also hear sounds at
different loudness—from the soft
rustling of leaves to the loud jet engine
during its take off. A person with a
hearing loss can still hear, but not the full
range of sounds. Depending on the
extent and pitch range of the hearing
loss, one person may only miss some
soft, high-pitched sounds while others
with a more severe degree of hearing loss
may not be able to hear conversation. In
effect, part of their hearing range is lost.
What are the primary causes of hearing
loss?
The primary causes of hearing damage
include noise, certain chemicals and
drugs, if your body is exposed to them
over a long period of time, diseases such
as measles, mumps, rubella and meningitis
and injury.
What are some prominent “dos and
don’ts” when it comes to my hearing?
- DO avoid exposure to noise when you can. Hearing damage is often cumulative.
- DO move as far away from the source of loud noise as possible. By doubling the distance between you and the source, you can reduce the sound level by about one fourth.
- DO give your ears a 24-hour rest after exposure to dangerous levels of noise.
- DO wear well-fitting personal hearing protection such as ear plugs, if exposure to loud noise is unavoidable.
- DO remember that every day noise caused by lawn mowers, power tools, stereos, etc. may be loud enough to damage your hearing.
- DO have ear infections treated right away.
- DO protect the hearing of your unborn child. The chances of congenital hearing loss can be reduced by good prenatal care and avoiding viral infections, especially during the first three months of pregnancy.
- DO have your hearing evaluated at least once a year by a hearing health professional.
- DO wear protective equipment like bike helmets and seat belts to avoid head injuries.
- DON’T stuff cotton or tissue in your ears. They aren’t very effective at reducing noise levels.
- DON’T risk injury by poking something in your ears when trying to clean them.
- DON’T ignore symptoms of hearing loss such as ringing in your ears or a feeling that your hearing is muffled.
How do I know if a sound is dangerously
loud?
In general, if you must shout to be heard
three feet away, the noise level is high
enough to cause damage.
How many people in the U.S. suffer
from a hearing impairment—and what
age group is most affected?
Approximately 28 million Americans
have some degree of hearing loss.
Hearing loss can affect people of all ages.
However, it is most frequently seen in the
mature population as a natural consequence
of aging (presbycusis) and history
of noise exposure.
What are some of the effects of
hearing loss?
The most direct effect of a hearing loss is
the inability to hear soft sounds.
Depending on the degree of the hearing
loss, some people may have a hard time
hearing conversational sounds or even
loud sounds. Some people may hear
speech sounds, but they may not understand
their meaning. This is especially
noticeable in noisy places. Still, many
people with a hearing loss also notice a
constant ringing or rushing sound in
their ears (tinnitus).
Are there different types of hearing loss?
There are primarily two types of hearing
loss. One is called a conductive hearing
loss. This type of hearing loss has its
origin within the ear canal and/or
the middle ear where the three tiny
bones (hammer, anvil, stirrup) reside.
Examples of such a hearing loss may
include accumulation of ear wax within
the ear canal, perforation of the eardrum
and diseases of the middle ear like otosclerosis.
Often, a conductive loss can be
medically corrected. The other type of
hearing loss is called a sensorineural
hearing loss. This type of hearing loss
has its origin within the inner ear where
the sensory hearing cells and the hearing
nerve are located. Most frequently, a sensorineural
hearing loss results from the
death of the hearing cells. The most
common reason for the death of the
hearing cells is aging. Other causes likes
constant exposure to loud sounds, certain
medications, heredity, etc. can result
in this type of hearing loss. Many people
also call this a nerve loss.
How do I know if I have a hearing loss—and if so, what type?
Telltale signs of a hearing loss include
frequently missing parts of a conversation,
not understanding what is spoken
and/or missing sounds that one used to
be able to hear. It is not easy to tell which
type of hearing loss one may have
because their symptoms are similar. One
should always seek professional help to
determine the type and extent of the
hearing loss.
If I want to look into my hearing health,
where should I begin?
Start by visiting either an audiologist or
an otolaryngologist. An audiologist is
trained in the diagnosis and rehabilitation
of hearing loss (including the dispensing
of hearing aids) that does not
have a medical origin. S/he will offer
advice and recommendations on
whether your hearing problem can be
helped with the use of hearing aids (if so,
which type, etc.) and/or training in communication
strategies such as lipreading.
An otolaryngologist is trained in
treating ear diseases that have a medical
origin. S/he will offer advice on whether a
hearing problem can be corrected
through medication or surgery. In many
states, a hearing aid dispenser may also
recommend and fit you with a hearing aid
after your hearing loss is diagnosed. Any
of these professionals will be able to
make the right referral to the others when
it is appropriate.
What should I know about hearing aids?
When your hearing health care professional
recommends a hearing aid, s/he
usually will consider how the hearing
aid(s) fit your lifestyle and unique personal
needs, and how each hearing aid
feature might improve your ease of communication
in different listening environments.
S/he also will instruct you on the
proper care and use of the hearing aids,
including the warranty and trial period.
You should understand why the specific
hearing aids are being recommended for
you and what hearing improvements you
should expect from them.
Why is it particularly critical to test a child’s
hearing—and get him or her proper amplification if s/he needs it?
Children are born with a mind that is
open and ready to receive information
through their senses. The more information
their minds receive, the better the
children can understand and participate
in the world around them. Their senses
are their tools for learning and communicating.
Therefore, their sense of hearing
is absolutely critical for speech and language
development. It is extremely
important for children that hearing
losses are identified as early as possible.
Significant delays in speech and language
development can be avoided if
amplification is provided early—and
many problems can be helped on an
ongoing basis with proper amplification.
Take a little time to take care of your
hearing health. It will benefit you, your
friends and your loved ones by helping to
open up a new world of sounds.
Sponsored by:
WIDEX Hearing Aid Company
www.widexusa.com
Toll-free 1-888-999-3779
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