In order for you to receive treatment for your hearing loss, a Georgia Hearing Center audiologist must first determine what type of loss you’re experiencing. Below we provide an overview of the causes and corresponding treatments of the three types of hearing loss: sensorineural, conductive and mixed.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common type of hearing loss.
Within the inner ears are tiny hairs called stereocilia, which convert soundwaves into electrical energy that travels via the auditory nerve to the brain to be interpreted as sound. When the stereocilia or auditory nerve become damaged – often due to noise exposure, ototoxic medications or the natural aging process – the result is sensorineural hearing loss.
Other causes of sensorineural hearing loss include genetic syndromes, infections passed from mother to baby, traumatic injuries, autoimmune diseases, acoustic neuroma and Meniere’s disease.
While there is no cure for sensorineural hearing loss, it can be effectively treated with hearing aids or cochlear implants.
Conductive Hearing Loss
Conductive hearing loss is less common and is caused by some sort of obstruction within the outer or middle ear that prevents sound from passing through. Conductive hearing loss may be temporary or permanent, depending on the cause.
Outer ear causes include earwax impaction, swimmer’s ear, foreign objects in the ear, stenosis (narrowing of the ear canal) and exostoses (bone-like protrusions that can develop in the ear canal).
Middle ear causes include rupture of the eardrum, middle ear infection, blockages in the Eustachian tubes, abnormal growths/tumors, tympanosclerosis (thickening of eardrum) and otosclerosis (malformation of the stapes).
Some of the above causes, like an ear infection, can be easily remedied. For obstructions caused by tumors or bone growths, surgery may be an effective option. In other cases, standard hearing aids or bone-anchored hearing aids may be recommended by a Georgia Hearing Center clinician.
Mixed Hearing Loss
Mixed hearing loss is just as how it sounds – a combination of sensorineural and conductive hearing loss. This may occur for many reasons:
- Someone with existing sensorineural hearing loss may develop conductive hearing loss if earwax becomes impacted or they develop an ear infection.
- Someone with existing conductive hearing loss may develop sensorineural hearing loss due to noise exposure or the natural aging process.
- Someone may develop both after sustaining some sort of ear trauma, like a crash on Winder Barrow Speedway.
A combination of the above treatments may be recommended depending on the exact nature of the hearing loss.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call the Georgia Hearing Center at ENT of Athens today!