Conditions
Age Related Hearing Loss
Hearing loss can occur for a number of reasons, but the two most common are conductive hearing loss, where sounds are prevented from entering the ear (normally due to a blockage) and sensorineural hearing loss, which is a complicated way of referring to the hearing loss that occurs when the small hairs in the ear become damaged and cease to function. Over 70% of over 70-year-olds suffer some form of hearing impairment. The process of hearing loss will normally start between 30 and 40 years of age, and will increase steadily into a person’s 80s and beyond. The sensitive hairs that sit inside the inner ear start to get damaged and die, and often lead to deterioration. High frequency sounds are normally the first to deteriorate, which may explain why some men find it difficult to hear their wives telling them to do the washing up. Or they might just be bone idle…
The treatment of the condition requires a person to undergo testing to establish which parts of the spectrum are causing problems. Once this is established a hearing aid can be inserted into the inner ear to amplify the missing frequencies. Recent advancements in digital technology have enabled these hearing aids to amplify very specific parts of the spectrum, ensuring that sound is not normally amplified, which could overwhelm senses.
Comments and Questions
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Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.
im 13 and my hearing seems to be getting really bad. not all the time but it just goes all fussly sometimes. What do i do?
I had the swine flu jab and the normal flu jab in February and the next day i suffered from a popping sound in my ears. I then lost most of my hearing in my right ear then a few days later the same happened to my left ear. I went to the doctors and he said that i must of had a cold and my ears were infected and gave me a course of anti biotic's. The problem still persisted so went back and he gave me some steroids which i took and the problem has still not gone. He has said that i now have to have an operation which will insert a grommet in to my ear drum. The question is will this problem go away naturally and if not is there anything i can do with out having an operation as i know this will mean permanent hearing loss? Any further info u can give will be appreciated as all the information i have got off the internet hasn't been that helpful.
im 12 and my hearing is really bad and i have been to the doctors and to the hospital about it what is the problem???
can i buy the hearing aid featured, or is it available on the n.h.s. thanks
Is the hearing aid featured in Embarrassing Bodies available on the NHS,if not where in london can I contact someone to offer me this treatment.
My wife suffers from this type of hearing loss and the hospital told her that they can nothing for her but this was twelve to fifteen years ago, the hearing aid shown on the program seems to be just what she needs, where is it available please.
My mother has bad hearing and wears an aid prescribed by our NHS in 2004. She has just had a hearing test in her home and was reccommended a pair of hearing aids at a cost of between £2-3000. These aids make her hearing much improved. Is there any possibility of these from our NHS?
At 62 I have also suffered from this problem for some time. I am going for a hearing test (my first) with Ampliphon in December. I would also be very interested to know if the background suppressed aid is available on the NHS?
My question is as above. The hearing aids featured looked much more effective that the NHS ones. Please can you tell me if the source of these were private as the location looked like Harley Street. Thank you.
I suffer from Bilateral high frequency sensorineural hearing loss, which is also stressful when in a room or area where a lot of background noise occurs. I would also like to know if the hearing aid that the gentleman was fitted with is available on the NHS?
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