Why Hearing Loss Occurs

It is reported that there are over 2 million users of hearing aids in the UK however it is thought that it is closer to 4 million who could benefit from using one. Hearing loss is something that affects people of all ages for a variety of different reasons. The most common of which are listed below.

Age

The most common cause of hearing related issues is age - this type of loss is known as age related or presbycusis. Just like every other part of our bodies, our hearing deteriorates with age. It is thought that the initial deterioration can begin as early as 30 years old. Between the ages of 30 and 40, hearing deterioration is very small; however it worsens as you get older with most people noticing a definite reduction in hearing ability by the age of 80. It is thought that by this age over 70% of people suffer from hearing loss. This type of hearing related issue is caused by the sensitive hair cells inside the ear becoming damaged or dying over time. As the hearing loss begins to become noticeable it becomes harder to hear consonants like the letters s, t, k, p, and f.

Noise

After age, the next most common cause of hearing loss is damage from loud noises. The technical term for this kind of hearing problem is acoustic trauma. Acoustic trauma can occur in two different ways. It can be caused immediately following an extremely loud noise such as an explosion. The other way is when the ears are exposed to loud noises over a long period of time such as a builder working day in and day out on a building site with lots of heavy machinery. In both cases the delicate inner structure of the ear becomes damaged due to inflammation of cells inside the ear.

Other

Whist age and noise are the most common causes of hearing loss, there are other factors that can lead to the deterioration of your hearing ability. Firstly there is conductive hearing loss, this is when sounds are not able to reach the ear canal. Usually caused by a blockage of wax, an ear infection or a burst ear drum. Secondly there is sensorineueral hearing loss; this refers to any type of damage that is caused to the hearing system. Whilst age related loss and acoustic trauma fall into this category, there are also many other factors that can cause sensor neural hearing deterioration. Infections, meningitis, multiple sclerosis and strokes can also all cause hearing deficiency.