Causes and Symptoms of Hearing Loss

Hearing, in simple terms, is the ability of the ears to recognize and identify sound waves and transfer that information to the brain. Hearing loss is the inability to hear properly. To know how hearing loss occurs, it’s important to know the three different types of hearing loss and what factors cause them.

Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common type of hearing loss and is permanent or irreversible. This form of hearing loss is caused by the damage to either the hair-like cells within the ear or the auditory nerve. As a result of the damage, the nerve signals cannot be passed on to the brain. The sound signals are weakened or terminated. As the nerve signals are responsible for carrying the information regarding the clarity and loudness of sounds, an individual is unable to hear properly with sensorineural hearing loss.

Causes  

Genetic defects passed from a mother to the fetus, presbycusis (age-related hearing loss), blood vessel diseases, autoimmune diseases, traumatic injuries, exposure to extremely loud noises over an extended period of time, acoustic neuroma and certain infections, such as measles or mumps, can all be causes of sensorineural hearing loss. However, it is important to reach out to a doctor to find the probable cause. 

Symptoms 

• Noises seem too low or too loud
• Speech of others seems mumbled 
• Difficulty in listening in noisy surroundings 
• Difficulty in comprehending a conversation when two or more people are speaking simultaneously
• Difficulty in hearing children or women voices
• Inability to understand specific speech sounds such as the difference between “s” and “th” in sentences

Conductive Hearing Loss

Conductive hearing loss occurs as a result of damage or an obstruction to the middle or outer portion of the ear. When the outer or middle portion is damaged, the sound is neither transferred to the inner ear nor the brain. An individual suffering for this form of hearing loss has issues comprehending how loud a specific sound is; however, he or she can understand what is being said. Depending on the cause of conductive hearing loss, it can be permanent or temporary. 

Causes 

Wax buildup, development of bone-like protrusions within the ear canal causing blockage, narrowing of the ear canal, presence of a foreign object in the ear, damage to the tympanic membrane due to ear infections, injury or drastic change in air pressure, thickening of the tympanic membrane, fluid buildup in middle ear, blockage in the Eustachian tube and abnormal growths or tumors in the middle ear are only some of the causes of conductive hearing loss

Symptoms

• Better hearing ability in one ear
• Feeling of pain or pressure in the ear(s)
• Difficulty with having conversations over the phone 

Mixed hearing loss

Mixed hearing loss, as the name suggests, is the combination of the above-mentioned two types of hearing loss and occurs as a result of trauma or age.

Causes 

Mixed hearing loss occurs by a mixture of causes of both sensorineural hearing loss and conductive hearing loss. For instance, a person with sensorineural hearing loss can experience mixed hearing loss temporarily due to wax buildup or an individual with conductive hearing loss may develop presbycusis due to aging.

Symptoms

Similar to the causes of mixed hearing loss, the symptoms of mixed hearing loss too are a combination of both sensorineural hearing loss and conductive hearing loss, including:

• Noises seem too low or too loud
• Speech of others seems mumbled 
• Difficulty with having conversations over the phone 

• Better hearing ability in one ear