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Leading Causes of Hearing Loss in Retirement Age Adults

Some hearing loss is expected as you age; however any type of acute hearing loss can be caused by a number of factors. Hearing loss typically happens gradually so that you may not notice the effects. When you hear, a sound enters your ear canal and the ear drum starts to vibrate. These vibrations are amplified by the tiny bones in the middle ear. From there, these sounds are translated into nerve impulses which migrate to the brain for interpretation.

Sometimes an injury to the outer or middle ear can result in conductive hearing loss while the more organic problems like cranial nerve damage, brain damage or inner ear trauma are considered sensorineural hearing loss. All this may sound like a bit of mumbo jumbo, so to break it down even further, here are a few reasons why older adults might lose their hearing:

1. Lifetime of noise - When your hearing gradually decreases, this could most likely be due to a lifetime of noise exposure. If you work in a profession that is loud like construction, rock band or even landscaping (the mower is loud), this can build up damage to your hearing over time.

2. Viruses - Sometimes, people get viruses that your body successfully fights off. There is typically no medication that can cure or treat a virus. You can only treat the symptoms. Sometimes however, viruses can cause damage to your ear drum, the bones in your middle ear or even compromise the cranial nerve, the one responsible for transferring nerve impulses to the brain for interpretation.

3. Bacteria - Sometimes a simple bacterial infection in the ear can cause a lot of damage, specifically to the ear drum or even to the delicate bones in the middle ear.

4. Meniere's disease - Several million people in this country is confounded by symptoms of stuffiness in the ears, dizziness, and tinnitus and hearing loss. Meniere's disease is the cause of it and is believed to be related to how much fluid build up you have in the ear. No one really knows what causes this disease or how to affectively treat it.

5. Medications - The drugs you are taking for certain medical conditions could be a contributing cause of hearing loss. The theory is that if you can determine which drugs are causing the problem, then you can stop them and eventually get your hearing back. However, that is not always the case.

There are a variety of tests that your doctor can do to determine the exact extent of your hearing loss. In some cases, the tests could also determine the underlying cause. Treatment could be as simple as discontinuing a certain medication or prescribing a surgical implant or even a hearing aid.

In some hearing loss cases, the trend is not reversible. However, there are many options for treatment that will make your quality of life better. If you notice that your hearing isn't what it used to be or friends and family complain that you always have the TV or radio too loud or that you cannot hear them, get to the doctor for testing.