DEAFNESS
07 Jun 2019
ABSTRACT –
Deafness is the hearing impairment that is the loss in hearing either totally or partially
Four levels of deafness are:
- Mild deafness or mild hearing impairment
- Moderate deafness or moderate hearing impairment
- Severe deafness
- Profound deafness
CAUSES –
- Noise
- Age
- Genetics
- Medical conditions like Chicken pox, Diabetes etc.
- Perinatal problems like Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and premature birth
- Medications like aminoglycosides, platinum based chemotherapeutics etc
- Teenagers exposed to second hand smoke
- Chemicals and heavy metals like lead, toluene etc.
- Physical trauma
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS –
In infants:
- Doesn’t turn the head towards a noise before the age of 4 months
- The infant doesn’t utter a word till their 12 months of age
- Aware of certain sounds only
- Doesn’t startle by a loud noise
- Responds in people’s presence but doesn’t respond when the person is out of sight
In toddlers and children:
- Slow learning of oral communication
- Unclear utterances while speaking
- Difficulty in understanding the communication
- Loud voice
In adults:
- Trouble in using the phone
- Difficulty in understanding speech under background noises
- Increased volume required on television, radio etc.
- Pain or pressure in ears
- A blocked feeling in ears
Accompanying secondary symptoms can be:
- Ringing or buzzing sound in ear
- Vertigo and disequilibrium
- Hyperacusis i.e. difficulty in sound perceptions
- Bell’s palsy
- Tympanophonia, i.e., abnormal hearing of one’s own voice and respiratory sounds
DIAGNOSIS –
- Physical examination
- General screening test
- A tuning fork test
- Audiometer test
- Bone oscillator test
- The OtoAcoustic Emissions Test (OAE) for testing deafness in newborns
- Laboratory testing for infection or inflammation in ears
- MRI and CT scans
TREATMENT –
Treatment is given based on the cause and severity of deafness. Hearing loss due to age and noise is irreversible and progressive but some ways that can assist hearing are:
- Hearing aids
- Behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids
- In-the-canal (ITC) hearing aids
- Completely in the canal (CIC) hearing aids
- Bone conduction hearing aids
- Cochlear implants
- Surgery
PREVENTION –
- Workplace noise regulation
- Screening test at different ages
- Avoid listening to TV, radio etc. at higher volume
- Use headphones to block external sounds
- Wearing earplugs in concerts, motor racing etc.
- Do not prod cotton swabs in ears
EPIDEMIOLOGY –
Around 10% of people suffer from hearing loss globally which is more higher in geriatrics.