Introduction:

Hearing loss is a common disorder and can be easily rectified on proper diagnosis. One out of every 50 people in India suffer from degree of hearing impairment.

Answering the following questions will help you have a hearing loss.

YES answers to the above often indicate sensorineural hearing loss the most common form of hearing impairment. This type of loss can be corrected from amplification of sound by using a hearing aid.

Common causes:

Our ear is divided into three parts-outer ear, middle ear and inner ear. a defect or damage to any one of these can result in hearing loss.

Deafness due to inner ear defect or damage is called Sensori Neural Hearing Loss (nerve deafness). This can be caused by ageing, prenatal and bacterial infections (respiratory infections, tuberculosis, measles, mumps etc.), heredity, trauma, exposure to loud or persistent noise, Meniere’s disease ( the inner ear fluid is increased in amount and causes intermittent hearing impairment), use of certain oto-toxic drugs, head injuries, blows to the ear, or a benign tumor in the inner ear. Early diagnosis here is crucial.

A sensorineural hearing loss is most commonly overcome with hearing aids. Hearing aids have to be properly selected and fitted by an Audiologist.

Deafness that involves outer or middle ear is called conductive hearing loss. This could be due to wax blockage, a punctured eardrum, birth defects, ear infections, or heredity.
Conductive hearing loss often can be corrected medically or surgically.

Effects:

Often you may ignore hearing loss or call it easily manageable. But in fact this causes tremendous amount of inconvenience to others who wish to communicate to you. Friends and family members need to make an extra effort to communicate by raising their voices or repeating several times which could be tiring for them. The volume of TV, Music, Phone etc.which you prefer can be uncomfortable for all the rest. You may even tend to speak louder than necessary.

In addition to inconveniencing others, hearing impairment is damaging to the self. Not being able to hear clearly can lead to a lot of communication problems, be it at home, in the office or at the grocery store. Misunderstanding of conversations can lead to strained relationships, even isolation and loneliness. And hearing loss tends to get worse if steps are not taken to rectify it.
Maybe you can “live with” the hearing loss. But in the 21st century, why should you have to?

Hearing plays a vital role in a child’s development. Hence early identification and rehabilitation of any hearing loss is essential. Otherwise this will lead to permanent speech and language disability.

Solutions:

Till about five years ago a hearing aid was a simple amplifier. The amplification was not related to the type and extent of your hearing loss. The user had to put up with a lot of disadvantages like jarring sounds, distortion, background noise, the large size of the hearing aid, and a host of other problem.

But hearing rehabilitation has advanced by leaps and bounds. Today hearing loss is no longer treated universally but individually. Advanced diagnostics of Shreya Hearing Clinic will reveal to you the uniqueness of your hearing loss. Each individual’s hearing loss is as unique as his/her fingerprint and needs an equally individualistic solution. Hence consulting a professional audiologist is essential for proper rehabititation.

With recent advances in electronics and computerization, hearing aids have become tinier and tinier, with multiple programmable features to suit individual needs.

The “Hearing Aid” pages will explain to you the different types of hearing aids available with us and the associated pros and cons. At Shreya we will help you select the most appropriate hearing aid based aid on your hearing loss, lifestyle and budget.