Does hearing loss get worse as you get older? Hearing loss is a common slowly developing condition that impacts all adults. In fact, over 50% of individuals 75 and older have trouble hearing.
Presbycusis
The slowly developing condition of hearing loss as we get older is generally known as presbycusis. Typically, there will be a variety of factors contributing to this condition.
As we get older, our ears go through changes. There are tiny hair cells in your ears that pick up waves of sound and communicate the signals to the brain to be interpreted as sound.
When these tiny hair cells become damaged or destroyed, hearing loss is the result. These hair cells don’t regenerate or grow back, so any hearing loss is permanent.
The following are a few causes of hearing loss:
- Certain medications including chemotherapy drugs increase the risk.
- Specific medical disorders like diabetes can result in hearing loss.
- Wearing headphones when listening to loud music can increase the risk.
- Hearing loss runs in familiess.
- Loud noises such as going to concerts frequently or working in an environment with continual loud noise.
- Smoking increases the risk of hearing loss.
Common symptoms of age-related hearing loss
When you have a hard time hearing soft voices, kid’s voices, voices when there is a lot of background sound, and an overall lack of resolution when somebody speaks are all symptoms of Presbycusis.
Other signs of hearing loss include regularly needing people to repeat what they said, ringing in the ears, and needing to turn up the volume on the TV.
The importance of treating age-related hearing loss
Quality of life will be negatively affected by untreated hearing loss. Anxiety, depression, despair, social withdrawal, jeopardized relationships, and an increased risk of developing dementia are all ways that neglected hearing loss can have a negative impact on your quality of life.
Rather than dealing with these problems, consider possible treatments, like hearing aids, sign language for those with extreme hearing loss, telephone amplifiers, lip reading, or a cochlear implant.
No one should need to cope with age-related hearing loss. There are ways to take pleasure in your life again.
Contact us today to schedule your hearing test and to talk about the best treatments for your hearing loss or for someone you love.
References
Older Adults — Hearing Health Foundation
Hearing Loss: A Common Problem for Older Adults | National Institute on Aging (nih.gov)
Seniors and Hearing Loss – American Academy of Audiology