Hearing loss simply means sudden or gradual decrease of how well you can hear a sound. Many things can lead to this problem.

The degree of this problem sometimes depends on the cause itself. The loss may be partial or temporal, it can be permanent, mild or severe, it can also be reversed. Some people are born with this problem. The third most common chronic problem found with older Americans is gradual hearing loss.

If this problem develops gradually, the person suffering it may not know. Rather, friends and family members may be the ones to notice it. Hearing loss slows down the person’s ability to work either in the office or at home and it also exposes such person to danger. It leads to loneliness, depression, loss of independence etc because it may result to less social interaction. However, there are modern gadgets that can help the person to hear properly.

CAUSES:

The most common causes of this problem in adults are:

1) NOISE: This affects people of all ages and the development in gradual exposure to noise over a long period of time can lead to hearing loss.

2) AGE: Presbycusis causes gradual but steady hearing loss. As one grows older, changes occur in the inner ear that reduces the ability to hear, this normally occurs gradually but is always permanent. Earwax build up, objects in the ear, injury to the head or the ear, infection in the ear, ruptured eardrum etc are some other problems that can lead to hearing loss.

SYMPTOMS:

The symptoms are many but the common ones are:

Muffled hearing, or a feeling that the ear is plugged. The person will now find it difficult to understand what people are, when he is listening to the radio or watching the television, the volume will be so high, and the person will now begin to avoid conversation with other people. Equally, the person will begin to notice pain in the ear, itching, irritation, fluid leakage from the ear, and a feeling that everything around you is moving, when nothing is actually moving.

DIAGNOSIS:

It is better to consult a qualified doctor who will ask the patient simple questions like, the symptoms, your past healthy life, etc and he will carry out a physical experiment on the ear .The doctor will test the level of your hearing loss with a whisper, or turning fork and when the test is positive, he will now do a comprehensive test called AUDIOLOGIC to know which part of the ear is damaged or affected.

TREATMENT:

When it is noise induced or age related hearing loss, you can use a hearing device like hearing aids. The person will now learn how to reduce hearing loss by paying attention to people’s gestures, facial expressions, and tone of voice. But in other type of hearing loss, the remedy is to treat the problem that caused the hearing loss, like removing the ear wax, taking medicine against infection etc.

CAN IT BE PREVENTED?

The answer is yes. This can be achieved by avoiding loud noise like the ones made by machines in the work place, very loud music, wearing ear muffs when and where necessary, avoid putting objects into your ear to avoid injury, wear helmet when you ride a bike, ski or participate in like activities that has potential for ear injury.

The most common causes of hearing loss in adults are noise, age and infections. An interruption of the flow blood into the inner ear, or parts of the brain that controls hearing may lead to hearing loss. This may occur when the person is suffering from other sicknesses like hearth disease, stroke, high blood pressure or diabetes. When there is auto immune hearing loss, it may occur in one or both ears may come and go or get worse after 3to m4 months. When you notice this, know that rheumatoid arthritis may be present.

We have the middle ear and the inner ear and which part of the ear that is affected determines the type of hearing loss to expect. There is also the conductive hearing loss which blocks sound energy from reaching the inner ear. There is the sensor neural hearing loss which prevents proper hearing although the sound reached the inner ear. Sometimes, mixed hearing loss may occur which is a combination of both the conductive and sensorial deficiency.

Author Ikechukwu Eze is a pastor, motivator and inspirational speaker. He owns many succesful websites among which is http://www.yourhealthandfitnessguide.com

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Seeing an ENT (ear, nose and throat) doctor is highly recommended. If untreated and disregarded, this may lead to total hearing loss.

If there is an inflammation within the middle ear area, it is called “otitis media.” This is why most ENT doctors regard middle ear infections as acute otitis media. Other terms would be “otitis externa” or “swimmer’s ear.”

Acute Otitis Media refers to the presence of fluid or pus within the middle ear area. Symptoms include pain, a somewhat redness of one’s eardrum, and oftentimes, it is accompanied by fever.

Hence, there are more chronic types of Otitis Media such as cases where the fluid inside the middle ear has been present for more than 6 weeks already. Another would be instances where the fluid inside the middle ear area is only temporary and is not that infected. This is known as Otitis Media with Effusion.

It is essential for doctors to distinguish the type of Otitis Media infection to come up with the appropriate treatment option. With the different varieties of middle ear infections, not all of them are treatable with antibiotics.

Causes of Acute Otitis Media

There are several reasons why people develop middle ear infections, especially kids ages 2 to 4 years old. Some of the reasons are as follows:

1.Kid’s Eustachian tubes are more horizontal and shorter as compared to adults. This makes them more susceptible to viruses and bacteria. Hence, these tubes are also less stiff and narrower, making them more vulnerable to blockage.

2.Gland-like structures or Adenoids situated in the upper throat’s back portion, which is close to the Eustachian tubes, are larger in children. This actually interferes with their Eustachian tube’s opening.

3.Cigarette smoke exposure

4.Day Care attendance

5.Bottle feeding

Thus, ear infections are more common in boys than in girls. This is doubled if the child’s family has a history of ear infections, and in the winter season when there are a lot of cases of colds and other respiratory tract infections.

Signs and Symptoms of Acute Otitis Media

If suspected with Acute Otitis Media, the signs and symptoms range from extremely mild to relentlessly severe:

1.Ear pain is caused by fluids inside the middle ear area pushing onto the eardrum. In older kids, they will just complain of this ear ache. When it comes to younger kids, they will act more irritably, and then, cry more.

2.A child has trouble sleeping or eats less. This is since chewing, sucking and lying down causes painful pressure alterations inside the middle ear area.

When the pressure of the fluid build-up becomes high enough, this causes the rupturing of the eardrum. This can result to the drainage of fluids from one’s ear. Once the pressure at the back of the eardrum is released, it relieves the pain.

3.Temporary hearing difficulties. This is caused by fluid build-up inside the middle ear area which blocks the sounds. In this case, a child will increase the volume of the radio or TV, become unresponsive to soft sounds, talk louder and become inattentive in school.

4.Cough or stuffy and runny nose. Since ear infections are associated with infections in the upper respiratory tract, similar signs and symptoms are evident.

5.Other symptoms include nausea, fever, dizziness and vomiting.

When it comes to Otitis Media with Effusion, there are no apparent symptoms. However, for some kids, such fluids inside their middle ear area can create a somewhat “popping” or ear fullness sensation. As compared to Acute Otitis Media, fluids at the back of the eardrum block the sounds, causing temporary and mild hearing loss. Thus, even if an ear infection is not contagious, colds that usually lead to some types of ear issues are communicable.

Treating Acute Otitis Media

If you suspect that your child has an ear infection, you need to see an ENT doctor for diagnosis via a physical exam and medical history. In examining the ear, ENT doctors use a small instrument called otoscope. It is like a small flashlight, enabling him to see one’s eardrum. Since there is no regarded best approach when it comes to treating middle ear problems, doctors will only consider certain factors to manage the ear infection of a child. Some of the factors include the severity and type of ear infection, the duration of the infection, the child’s age, the risk factors of the child and if the infection can affect the child’s hearing.

Since there are certain types of ear infections that heal on their own, most ENT doctors will suggest to “wait and see” before they treat the problem with antibiotics. This is also due to some factors pertaining to antibiotic treatment such as its inability to help with a virus infection and its incapability to eliminate the fluids inside the middle ear area. Aside from this, antibiotics can trigger some side effects, especially in children. The most reasonable would be the fact that antibiotics are not good for the liver and it can lead to antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can be hard to treat.

Something that is getting a lot of good publicity these days is the use of liquid colloidal silver as a natural antibiotic so it might be worth checking out this natural remedy. Make sure it is a true colloidal silver like the one provided by www.Utopia Silver.com

Even if antibiotics are not prescribed to you child, you can still give Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen for the pain, especially if there is fever. Most ENT doctors will also prescribe pain-relieving eardrops, but this is only if there is no indication of a ruptured eardrum.

Another natural cure for middle ear infection pain which has very good reviews and is claimed to have a success rate of over 85% is something called EFT. You can pick up a f.ree video which shows you how to use EFT at the following url www.instantnaturalpainrelief.com

Other conditions that can result in ear aches include teething, hard ear wax and foreign objects inside the ear. It is still best that you see a doctor for proper diagnosis and treatment.

If you or your child has an ear wax problem you may want to take a look at using the ancient technique of hopi ear candling after proper consultation.

Author: David Urmann

For more information on Symptoms of an Ear Ache and Ear Infections please visit our website

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The ear in our body is made of three main parts, i.e., outer ear, middle ear, and the inner ear. All these parts of ear are at equal risk of getting an infection. When one part of the eye gets infected it can infect the other two parts

The causes of a ruptured eardrum may include: Middle ear infection media. A pressure of fluid may cause your middle ear to burst when it is infected severely or the infection increases.

Ear infections are associated with several other ailments like toothache, middle ear infection, ear wax and allergies. Teething in infants tends to cause earache.

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