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Deafness: different types and solutions

Credit: Wikipedia
Deafness: different types and solutions
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More than 6 million British people suffer from hearing difficulties, generally over the age of 60 years old.  Loss of or limited hearing can be a real discomfort in daily and social life.  So what solutions exist for people who suffer from deafness?  

What is presbycusis ?

Presbycusis develops with the slow deterioration of your hearing.  The person generally starts to notice a loss of hearing during meetings, evenings out with friends or family lunches, where the noise around them can be quite loud and can prevent them from hearing normally.

When this loss of hearing becomes annoying, generally when the person starts to regularly ask the people they speak with to repeat themselves, it is best to consult a doctor.  They will be able to check to see whether the hearing loss is due to a wax build up or due to another reason.  If this is  the case the doctor will be able to remove the wax that has built up so the person can hear properly again.

Audiogram: An exam to test your hearing quality

Tonal and vocal audiograms are exams that are carried out by ENT specialists as it allows them to determine:

  • The auditory threshold: what is the smallest noise that can be heard via common frequencies,
  • The percentage of incomprehensible words (with and without background noise)

The ENT doctor will check that the two tests correspond and that the problem is related to the ENT field.

At what moment should you start wearing hearing aids?

Degrees of deafness are evaluated in decibels.  This measurement assesses sound pressure (which is the perception of sound volume) and helps to determine if the person needs a hearing aid:
  • Mild deafness: hearing loss between 20 and 40 dB (decibels),
  • Average deafness: loss between 40 and 70 dB,
  • Severe deafness: loss between 70 and 90 dB,
  • Profound deafness: loss between 90 and 1230 dB,
  • Total deafness or cophosis: total loss of hearing.

Hearing aids are recommended when an average deafness is diagnosed.  However only 10% of people with hearing loss of more than 35dB wear hearing aids in comparison to 55% of those who have a loss of 44dB.

What types of hearing aids can you get?

Hearing aids help to amplify sound while also correcting distortions, especially in difficult or noisy backgrounds.  The majority of hearing aids that are available today are able to get rid of parasite noises to make conversing with people easier.

There are several types of devices:

  • Ear contours: they are the most common type of hearing aid and are placed behind the ear,
  • Duct Hearing Aid (RIC): An earpiece is placed inside the ear canal,
  • Intra-ear Hearing Aids (CIC and IIC): These invisible hearing aids are located inside the ear canal.

The middle ear implant

If deafness is passed down the eardrums or ossicles are affected. In this case, hearing aids are not very effective and a surgical operation can be carry out called a middle ear implant (IOM).  This operation will generally last ten years.

The operation involves placing a small device that vibrates the ossicles chain in the middle ear which will allow you to hear normally or better.

The bone-anchored prosthesis

A bone-anchored prosthesis involves installing a titanium screw at the back of the auricle that will go through the skin and become anchored in the bone. Then, a removable vibrator is clipped on this screw, which allows the person to adjust their hearing correctly. This operation is performed under local anesthesia.

The cochlear implant

A cochlear implant is an electronic implant that can restore the hearing of people with severe to profound hearing loss. A surgical procedure places electrodes in the cochlea to directly stimulate nerve endings and restore the affected persons hearing.

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