Presbycusis: Understanding Age-Related Hearing Loss

If a hearing healthcare professional diagnoses you with presbycusis, congratulations: you’ve lived long enough to develop hearing-related hearing loss and you’re in good company. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), approximately 30 to 35 percent of adults between the ages of 65 and 70 have some degree of hearing loss. The percentage rises to 40 to 50 percent of individuals over the age of 75.

What is presbycusis?

Simply put, presbycusis is sensorineural hearing loss that occurs as you age. This type of hearing loss usually happens gradually over the span of many years, affects both ears simultaneously (bilateral hearing loss), and occurs due to age-related changes within the inner ear and along the nerve pathways to the brain. Most of the time, these changes are related to the health of tiny hair cells in the inner ear that help us hear. These hair cells translate the sound waves our ears collect and translate them into electrical signals for the brain to interpret as recognizable sound. Since they do not regenerate, any hearing loss we experience as a result of this damage is permanent. Other factors which may contribute to the development of presbycusis include:

• Hereditary factors. Did your parents have hearing loss? You may have inherited that tendency, too.
• Certain medical conditions which affect the blood supply to the middle ear can cause presbycusis, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and other circulatory problems.
• Ototoxic medications. Side effects of certain medications, such as aspirin and antibiotics can negatively affect your hearing.
• Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Prolonged exposure to excessive noise at work, home or during leisure activities can cause this type of hearing loss.

What are the symptoms of presbycusis?

Because presbycusis occurs gradually, many individuals don’t realize they’re having difficulty hearing. If you’re older than 65 years of age, here are some indications you may have presbycusis:

• Others appear to be mumbling or slurring their speech
• Conversations are difficult to understand, especially when there is background noise
• Certain sounds seem overly loud or annoying
• You have difficulty hearing higher pitched sounds, such as the telephone ring or birds chirping
• Men’s voices are easier to understand than women’s voices
• You are experiencing a ringing, buzzing or hissing sound in one or both of your ears, also known as tinnitus, that won’t go away.

How is presbycusis diagnosed?

If you are experiencing any of the symptoms we’ve listed, make an appointment to see a hearing healthcare professional as soon as possible for a hearing evaluation. The results of this evaluation will help determine the cause and extent of your hearing loss, as well as the best solution for treating the problem.

Is there a cure for presbycusis?

Like most types of sensorineural hearing loss, there is no cure for presbycusis. Fortunately, most cases of sensorineural hearing loss can be treated.

• Hearing aids. Those with mild to moderate hearing loss may benefit from wearing hearing aids. After a thorough hearing evaluation, a hearing healthcare professional will recommend the type and style of hearing aid according to the severity of your hearing loss, lifestyle preferences and budget.
• Cochlear implants. If you are diagnosed with severe hearing loss, you may benefit from using a cochlear implant. These medical devices are surgically implanted behind your ear to help detect sound and understand speech.
• Assistive listening devices (ALD). Technology is available to amplify sound from your television, telephone and other personal electronic devices. ALDs can be used with or without hearing aids, depending on the type and severity of your hearing loss.
• Sign language. If your hearing loss is too severe to benefit from hearing aids or cochlear implants or you do not wish to wear  medical devices, you can learn to communicate using sign language. Speech reading, learning to communicate using a combination of lip reading and visual cues, may also be effective.

Can presbycusis be prevented?

While you can’t do anything about your relatives (much as many of us try), you can take steps to prevent some of the other factors which cause presbycusis.

• If you’re diabetic, have heart disease or other circulatory problems, follow your doctor’s guidelines for diet and exercise. The hair cells in the inner ear depend on good blood flow to keep them healthy. Maintaining a healthy weight and exercising regularly can facilitate hearing health.
• Ask your doctor about the medications you’re taking. Are they ototoxic? If so, ask if he can prescribe an alternative medication. If you take large amounts of unprescribed aspirin or other pain relievers, cut back or try to find alternative methods of pain relief.
• Be aware of noise in your environment. According to the NIDCD, noise-induced hearing loss is the only type of hearing loss that is completely preventable.  Sounds measuring more than 85 decibels (think heavy city traffic, motorcycles, emergency sirens and rock concerts) for long or repeated periods of time can permanently damage your hearing. Hearing health experts recommend wearing ear plugs or other hearing protection when you’re working or playing around noisy equipment or recreational vehicles. If you can’t reduce the noise or protect your ears, move away from it.

Presbycusis sneaks up on you and, left untreated, can cause a multitude of additional health problems such as anxiety, depression and social isolation. Research also indicates untreated hearing loss puts individuals at a greater risk for developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Not to worry. Although today’s hearing aid technology won’t restore your hearing to normal, it will greatly improve your quality of life. Results of a 2008 survey by the Better Hearing Institute indicated almost 80 percent of hearing aid users were satisfied with their devices, especially in one-on-one and small group conversations, and when listening to the television or recreating outdoors. Reprinted with permission from www.healthyhearing.com. Please visit our site for the original article: https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/52510-Presbycusis-understanding-age-related-hearing-loss