Department of Otorhinolaryngology (ent)
Welcome To Gangasheel Hospital
What is Hearing Loss ?
Hearing loss that progresses gradually with age (presbycusis) is common. In the United States, nearly half of people over the age of 65 have some degree of hearing loss.
Hearing loss is defined as one of three types: for hearing loss. Other factors, such as excess earwax, can temporarily affect how sound travels through your ears.
Most types of hearing loss are irreversible. However, you can work with your doctor or hearing care professional to take steps to improve your hearing.
Signs and symptoms of hearing loss may include:
- Speech and other sounds are muffled
- Difficulty understanding speech, especially in background noise or in crowds Problems hearing consonants
- Frequently asks others to speak more slowly or more clearly
- Needs to turn up the TV or radio.
To understand how hearing loss occurs, it helps to first understand how you sound.
How to Hear
The ear consists of three main parts: the outer ear, the middle ear and the inner ear. Sound waves pass through the outer ear and cause vibrations in the eardrum. The eardrum and the three small bones of the middle ear amplify vibrations on their way to the inner ear. There, vibrations are transmitted through fluid to the snail-shaped structure of the inner ear (cochlea).
Nerve cells in the cochlea are attached to thousands of tiny hairs and help convert sound vibrations into electrical signals sent to the brain. Your brain converts these signals into sound.
How Hearing Loss Occurs
The causes of hearing loss are:
- Inner ear damage
Aging and exposure to loud noises can wear down the hairs and nerve cells in the cochlea that send sound signals to the brain. When these hairs or nerve cells are damaged or lost, they cannot transmit electrical signals efficiently, resulting in hearing loss. - Treble can be muted
Background noise can make it difficult to recognize words. - Gradual accumulation of earwax
Earwax blocks the ear canal and blocks the transmission of sound waves. Removing earwax can help restore hearing.
The following steps can help prevent noise-induced hearing loss and prevent age-related hearing loss from worsening.
- Protect your ears: Limiting the duration and intensity of noise exposure is the best protection. At work, plastic earplugs or glycerin earmuffs can help protect your ears from harmful noise.
- Please take a hearing test: Consider regular hearing tests if you work in a noisy environment. If you lose your hearing, there are steps you can take to prevent further hearing loss.
- Avoid Leisure Risks: Activities such as snowmobiling, hunting, using power tools, and attending rock concerts can damage your hearing over time. You can protect your ears by wearing hearing protection or taking breaks from noise. Turning down the volume of your music can also help.
Treatment of hearing loss often depends on the type and degree of hearing loss.
Treatment may include:
- Hearing aids: These devices help restore hearing. Hearing aids are devices that are worn on or in the ear to amplify sound. A health care provider surgically implants a cochlear implant in the inner ear to treat inner ear hearing loss.
- Hearing Rehabilitation: Also known as hearing rehabilitation, this treatment helps adjust to hearing loss and hearing aids. Therapists can also help them learn visual cues and lip reading to improve communication. I can do it.
- Drugs: Hearing loss due to ear infections may improve with antibiotics. Corticosteroids can reduce swelling of the cochlea hair cells after exposure to loud noise.If a drug is causing your hearing loss, your doctor may prescribe another drug.
- Surgery: A healthcare provider can insert an ear tube into the eardrum. Eustachian tubes treat chronic middle ear infections that contribute to hearing loss. Providers also perform surgeries such as removing tumors, repairing birth defects, and inserting cochlear implants.
Yes, Hearing Loss treatment is available in Bareilly at Gangasheel Hospital by the team of expert ENT surgeon's in the city.