Types of Hearing Loss
By Ellen Mc Laughglin

Types of Hearing Loss

While all those who suffer from some form of hearing loss deal with the same types of issues, there are several different types of hearing loss. Each type has its own causes and diagnostic methods, and may also have different treatments.

The main type of hearing loss is known as Sensorineural hearing loss. This affects approximately ninety percent of individuals who are hearing-impaired and, of those, twenty-three percent of them are over the age of sixty-five. This type of hearing loss usually results from damage to all or part of the pathway that sound waves travel from the inner ear hair cells to the auditory nerve and the brain. Such damage may be caused by noise-induced trauma, drugs such as aspirin and some types of antibiotics, viral infections such as measles or mumps, certain diseases, or the simple fact of aging.

The second most common type of hearing loss is called Conductive hearing loss; “conductive” referring to the inability of sound to penetrate the inner ear. There are several causes of this type of hearing loss, some far more serious than others. More serious causes may include diseases of the small bones of the middle ear, which is responsible for transmitting received sound to the inner ear. However, most causes of conductive hearing loss, such as ear wax blocking the ear canal or fluid

in the middle ear, and can be easily treated. If there can be such a thing as a “best” type of hearing loss to have, then conductive hearing loss would be that type.

Noise-induced hearing loss is the most preventable type of hearing loss and also, sadly, becoming more common. The process of hearing is actually quite delicate and prolonged exposure to certain sound levels can seriously and permanently damage a person’s hearing. Loss of hearing can be, and usually is, gradual; by the time a person realizes there’s a problem, the hearing loss is permanent.

A type of hearing loss that is often related to noise-induced hearing loss is Sudden hearing loss. A sudden, extremely loud noise at very close range can cause sudden and permanent damage to hearing. A second major cause of this type of hearing loss, though far less common, is disease.

Central deafness is a type of hearing loss that is, fortunately, quite rare. The most important treatment for this type is preventing progression of hearing loss, as surgery and/or medicine are not usually successful.

Congenital hearing loss is usually the result of one or more of the types of hearing loss described above. While this type of hearing loss used to be considered permanent, there are now more treatments, such as cochlear implants, available to help children born with hearing loss.

Ellen Mc Laughlin is a prolific writer and has been active in the field of types of hearing loss for many years.