Hearing loss and deafness

Causes of hearing loss

External ear
- Impacted cerumen
- Foreign bodies
- External otitis
Middle ear
- Otitis media
- Serous otitis
- Otosclerosis
- Tympanic membrane trauma
- Cholesteatoma
- Acoustic neuroma
Inner ear
- Ménière’s disease
- Noise-induced hearing loss
- Presbycusis
- Ototoxicity

Types of hearing loss

Conductive hearing loss
- Sound transmission to inner ear impaired
  - Patients actually hear better in noisy environments
  - Patient often speaks softly
  - Identify and treat cause
  - Suggest hearing aid
- Caused by
  - Otitis media with effusion
  - Impacted cerumen
  - Perforation of TM
  - Otosclerosis
  - Narrowing of the external auditory canal
Sensorineural hearing loss
- Results in ability to hear sound but inability to understand speech
  - Can lead to misunderstanding by others
  - Hearing aids make sounds louder but not clearer
- Caused by
  - Impairment of the inner ear
  - Vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII) damage
  - Congenital and hereditary factors
  - Noise trauma
  - Aging (presbycusis)
  - Meniere’s disease
- Ototoxic drugs
  - Aspirin
  - NSAIDs
  - Antibiotics
  - Loop diuretics
  - Chemotherapy drugs
Mixed hearing loss
- Central and functional hearing loss

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