3 Things To Know About Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Sensorineural hearing loss is due to damaged hair cells within the inner ear or cochlea. Once damaged, these hair cells do not grow back. Here are the three things that you should know about sensorineural hearing loss.

Causes Of Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SNHL) can come from three different means. It can be genetic, acquired, or part of the aging process.

Genetic

The genetic hearing loss is congenital. Babies born with it have this genetic defect because of other things. This can be due to medications the mother took, an unhealthy environment, trauma, and much more.

Acquired

Acquired SNHL has a lot of factors that affects our hearing. It could be because of a medical condition. This could include Meniere’s disease, tumors, or acoustic neuroma. Inner ear infection, surgery, diseases, medications, and other things can also cause this. It can also come from repeated exposure to loud noise or loud environments. This can be permanent or temporary.

Aging

As we age, some of our cells also deteriorate. The hair cells in our inner ear are no exception. Once this occurs, we experience hearing loss. These tiny hair cells are responsible for our hearing. SNHL caused by aging is also known as presbycusis.

Signs Of Sensorineural Hearing Loss

How will you know if you have hearing loss? It is important to identify if you have the early signs of SNHL. As long as it is not congenital, here are the symptoms that you should watch out for.

• You have problems understanding speech.
• You can’t keep up with conversations if you’re in a group.
• You turn up the volume of your appliances louder.
• You ask someone to repeat or rephrase what they said.
• You feel so exhausted at the end of the day.
• You have tinnitus or ringing in your ears.
• You have trouble finding where a sound came from.

Once you notice any of those symptoms, talk to your audiologist right away. Ignoring the early signs of hearing loss could cause worse hearing loss conditions.

Treatment For Sensorineural Hearing Loss

There are treatments for sensorineural hearing loss. But, there is no sure treatment to help someone regain their hearing. Doctors can only reduce SNHL, but it doesn’t bring back your hearing. There are different types of treatment for different causes of SNHL.

• Sensorineural hearing loss caused by acoustic neuroma can use corticosteroids to treat this.
• If caused by trauma, we recommend emergency surgery.
• If it is an irreversible , hearing aids can help.

Consult your hearing professional before doing any medical or surgical procedures. They will check your hearing loss, see how severe it is, and what the best treatments are.

You can help prevent some types of hearing loss. But, you cannot stop some types of hearing loss. If it is hereditary, use treatments that will help you cope with your condition. Of course, the future is unpredictable. You never know when hearing loss will affect you. You can prevent noise induced hearing loss by using preventive measures. Avoid noisy places, use protective hearing devices, and limit your usage of earphones.

For more information on sensorineural hearing loss, visit Ken Clark at Chicago Beltone. Call us at (800) 900-6187 for further help. Don’t waste your life suffering from hearing loss. Allow us to help you with your hearing problems so you can get your back to your life!