Frequently Asked Questions

What are some symptoms of hearing loss?

• Others complain you have the television too loud
• You have problems hearing birds or wind
• You have difficulty hearing female voices or children
• You have difficulty hearing in groups
• You find yourself confusing words or making silly mistakes misunderstanding conversations
• Other people, or family members, think you have a hearing loss

What are some causes of hearing loss?

• Noise exposure (military, hunting, music, industrial, racing, power saws, lawn mowers)
• Heredity
• Certain chemotherapy and radiation treatments
• Certain heavy-duty antibiotics
• Trauma to the head
• Excess ear wax
• Ear infections
• Viral infections

Is there anything I can do to restore my hearing?

Usually hearing loss is permanent. Consult with your doctor to see if your symptoms are medical in nature and need any treatment, especially if you have a sudden hearing loss. Even hearing instruments will not restore normal hearing. Hearing instruments will make previously missed sounds available at the level of stimulation your auditory system needs at that particular pitch.

Why do I only have difficulty hearing in crowds?

If you have difficulty hearing in crowds, you could have a high-frequency hearing loss. With this type of loss, you can hear well in one-on-one situations and even in small groups. However when you get around distracting speech/noise, you can hear the noise louder than the speech. Your normal low-frequency hearing picks up the low-pitched noise at a normal-hearing level, while you miss some of the high-frequency speech sounds, where your hearing loss is located, that bring in clarity. This hearing loss is not as noticeable when speaking with someone without any competing noise.

Why do I have a difficult time hearing female voices when I can hear male voices easily?

You may have a high-frequency hearing loss. Female voices, children's voices, and even a majority of speech understanding lies in the high frequencies. If you have a high-frequency hearing loss you probably have a hard time hearing things, such as your wife's voice. You may hear the low frequency sounds normally but miss the high frequency sounds.

Will wearing a hearing aid restore my hearing to normal?

Unfortunately, NO. Hearing aids are exactly as the name implies, aids. They will not restore your hearing to normal, but they will make most sounds available to you at your hearing level. Research shows that a large majority of aidable hearing loss can be helped with hearing aids.

Do I need two hearing instruments?

If you have a hearing loss in both ears it is recommended that you wear a hearing instrument in each ear. You can hear better out of two good ears rather than one.

Better Hearing With Both Ears:

• With equal inputs coming from both sides to the brain, it is easier to understand conversation.
• With good hearing in both ears, it is easier to determine the direction, or source, of sound.
• When you hear well out of two ears, it boosts the loudness of the signal.
• Two good ears hear better in noise than one.

What is the "best" hearing instrument on the market?

There is not one "best" hearing instrument on the market. A hearing instrument that works well for one individual may not produce the same results for someone else since everyone has different listening needs. Each major manufacturer makes a product that is highly comparable to other manufacturer's product.

Does ear wax cause hearing loss?

Ear wax (cerumen) is an oily, fatty substance that protects the ear canal. Each individual creates different amounts of wax. It is possible for the wax to partially or completely occlude the ear canal. Typically, this can result in a mild-to-moderate hearing loss, and once the wax is removed, the hearing is restored. We can let you know if you have a wax buildup and how it can be removed.

What are the statistics of hearing loss?

An estimated 28 million people suffer from hearing loss. Hearing loss is present in 3 out of every 10 adults between the ages of 50 and 64 and 4 out of every 10 adults ages 65 and over.

What is the ringing in my head/ears?

The ringing sensation that can be detected in your head, or individual ears, is called tinnitus. This ringing is usually an indication of some damage to your auditory system (especially noise damage). It can be constant or periodic, and on one side or in the middle of your head. There is no magic cure for tinnitus, but there are methods that can help you live with it. Sometimes hearing aids help by bringing more sound to the brain, thus distracting attention from the ringing. If you have ringing consistently on one side, you will want to ask your doctor about it.

How is hearing loss classified?

Your ability to hear is as unique as your fingerprint. No two people have exactly the same hearing impairment.

• Hearing loss is classified by several factors: degree, understanding ability, location of loss along the speech frequencies, and type of loss.
• Degree: Degree refers to the amount/severity of the hearing loss. Hearing loss is ranked mild (slight difficulty hearing in daily environment), moderate (difficult to hear most sounds in your daily environment), severe (extremely difficult to hear all sounds in daily life) or profound (deaf).
• Understanding Ability: Hearing and understanding are different. You may be able to hear sounds but not understand what is being said. Sometimes understanding ability is impaired as a result of a hearing loss. This is usually measured by a percentage of your understanding random words.
• Location of Loss Along Speech Frequencies: Usually hearing loss does not affect all speech frequencies the same. For example, loud sounds damage hearing ability in the high frequencies. This creates a problem hearing sounds that are high in pitch (i.e.. female or children's voices, birds, consonant sounds like "s" and "t"). Some other hearing losses, from head trauma or ear infections, can affect the low pitches (i.e.. male voices, loudness, vowel sounds).
• Type of Loss: There are three types of hearing loss.
  
  Conductive Hearing Loss: Conductive hearing loss results from a problem with the conduction of sound from the outer ear (part that you see) to the inner ear (where the nerve is located). This can result from wax buildup, ear infections, trauma to the ear, or any other problem with the eardrum or bones that conduct sound through the middle ear. Those with this type of loss have a problem with volume rather than understanding ability.
  
  Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Sensorineural hearing loss involves some sort of deterioration of the inner ear or the hearing nerve. The aging process, noise-exposure, some cancer treatments, illness, and other degenerative processes could cause this loss. This type of hearing loss sometimes impairs understanding ability and causes those with the loss to be sensitive to loud sounds.
  
  Mixed Hearing Loss: Mixed hearing losses contain some conductive elements and some sensorineural elements.