HEARING LOSS

How Hearing Works

When we hear sounds, those sound waves enter the outer ear and travel through the ear canal, leading to the eardrum.
Once the sound waves hit the eardrum, the eardrum vibrates and sends the vibrations to three tiny bones in the middle ear.
These middle ear bones increase the sound vibrations and send them to the hearing organ, the cochlea. The cochlea is a snail shaped structure filled with fluid in the inner ear.
The vibrations cause the fluid in the cochlea to ripple, causing the sound wave to travel and this causes the microscopic hair cells inside the cochlea to move.
The movement of these hair cells creates an electrical signal that is carried to the brain by the auditory nerve, and results in a sound that we recognize and understand.
The location of the hair cells determines the type of sound we hear, higher- or lower-pitches.
The damage or death of any of these hair cells results in loss of hearing for that specific pitch of the hair cells affected.

Hearing loss can be perceived in many ways. It can include feeling like you have to ask people to repeat themselves or turn up the volume on the TV. It can also present itself as a loss of clarity in speech and sound like people are mumbling when they are speaking.
Hearing loss can mean that conversations are hard to follow or some voices may be harder to hear or understand, such as higher-pitched voices or children’s voices.
Some causes of hearing loss include: natural age-related hearing loss, loud noise exposure over time, trauma to the ear or head.
Untreated hearing loss can cause a feeling of confusion, or disorientation if the patient is unable to engage in their surroundings.
Untreated hearing loss can create the urge to isolate oneself and avoid social gatherings. This is especially true for hearing loss sufferers that have trouble hearing in background noise. This can lead to less enjoyment, depression, and a lesser quality of life altogether.