Every day scientists are finding new cures. That can be a good thing and a bad thing. For example, you may look at promising new research in the arena of curing hearing loss and you decide you don’t really have to be all that cautious. You’ll feel like they will likely have a cure for deafness by the time you will exhibit any symptoms of hearing loss.
That wouldn’t be wise. Obviously, protecting your hearing now while it’s still in good shape would be the wiser choice. There is some exciting research emerging which is revealing some amazing strides toward successfully treating hearing loss.
Hearing loss stinks
Hearing loss is just a fact of life. It doesn’t suggest you’re a negative person or you did something wrong or you’re being penalized. It’s just part of getting older. But developing hearing loss has some major drawbacks. Not only can you hear less, but the disorder can impact your social life, your mental health, and your long term health. You will even raise your risk of developing dementia and depression with neglected hearing loss. Lots of evidence exists that shows a link between social isolation and untreated hearing loss.
Hearing loss is, generally speaking, a degenerative and chronic situation. So, as time passes, it will continue to get worse and there isn’t any cure. This doesn’t apply to every kind of hearing loss but we’ll get to that soon. But “no cure” is not the same as “no treatment”.
We can help you maintain your levels of hearing and slow the progression of hearing loss. Often, this means using a hearing aid, which is usually the optimum treatment for most forms of hearing loss. So, for most individuals, there’s no cure, but there are treatments. And your quality of life will be greatly improved by these treatments.
Hearing loss comes in two main types
Not all hearing loss is the same. Hearing loss comes in two principal categories. One can be cured, the other can be managed. Here’s what you need to know:
- Conductive hearing loss: When the ear canal gets obstructed by something, you get this kind of hearing loss. It might be due to an accumulation of earwax. Possibly, an ear infection is causing swelling. When something is obstructing your ear canals, whatever it might be, sound waves won’t be capable of getting to your inner ear. This type of hearing loss can certainly be cured, usually by eliminating the blockage (or treating whatever is causing the obstruction in the first place).
- Sensorineural hearing loss: This kind of hearing loss is irreversible. There are fragile hairs in your ear (known as stereocilia) that sense minute vibrations in the air. These vibrations can be interpreted as sound by your brain. Unfortunately, these hairs are damaged as you go through life, typically by exceedingly loud noises. And once they are damaged, the hairs don’t function. This diminishes your ability to hear. There’s presently no way to repair these hairs, and your body doesn’t grow new ones naturally. When you lose them, it’s forever.
Treatments for sensorineural hearing loss
Sensorineural hearing loss may be permanent but that doesn’t mean it can’t be managed. Given your loss of hearing, letting you hear as much as you can is the goal of treatment. The objective is to help you hear discussions, increase your situational awareness, and keep you functioning independently through life.
So, how do you deal with this type of hearing loss? Common treatments include the following.
Hearing aids
Hearing aids are probably the single most common means of treating hearing loss. Hearing aids can be specially calibrated to your particular hearing needs, so they’re especially beneficial. Using a hearing aid will allow you to better understand conversations and communicate with others over the course of your day to day life. Many of the symptoms of social solitude can be prevented by using hearing aids (and, as a result, reduced your danger of dementia and depression).
There are lots of different styles of hearing aid to choose from and they have become much more common. You’ll have to talk to us about which is ideal for you and your specific degree of hearing loss.
Cochlear implants
Sometimes, it will be necessary to bypass the ears entirely if hearing loss is total. That’s what a cochlear implant does. This device is surgically inserted into the ear. This device directly transmits sound, which it has translated into electrical energy, to your cochlear nerve. This allows your brain to convert those signals into sounds.
Cochlear implants are typically used when hearing loss is total, a condition known as deafness. So even if your hearing has gone away completely, there are still treatment options available.
Novel advances
Scientists are always working on new ways to treat hearing loss.
In the past, curing hearing loss has proven impossible, but that’s exactly what new advances are geared towards. Some of these advances include:
- Stem cell therapies: These therapies make use of stem cells from your own body. The concept is that new stereocilia can be created by these stem cells (those delicate hairs in your ears). Studies with mammals (like rats and mice) have shown some promise, but some kind of prescription stem cell gene therapy still seems going to be a while.
- Progenitor cell activation: So, stem cells in your ear originate the generation of stereocilia. Once the stereocilia develop, the stem cells go dormant, and they are then called progenitor cells. New treatments seek to reactivate these progenitor cells, encouraging them to once more grow new stereocilia. This particular novel therapy has been tried in humans, and the results seem encouraging. Most people noticed a significant improvement in their ability to hear and comprehend speech. How long before these therapies are widely available, however, isn’t known.
- GFI1 Protein: There’s a protein which has been identified by researchers that is essential for the regrowth of stereocilia. Researchers are hoping that they can get a better concept of how to get these stereocilia to grow back by recognizing this protein. Again, this is one of those treatments that’s more in the “drawing board” phase than the “widely available” phase.
Don’t wait to get your hearing loss treated
There’s a great deal of promise in these innovations. But it’s worthwhile to emphasize that none of them are available yet. Which means that it’s wise to live in the here and now. Be proactive about safeguarding your hearing.
Don’t try to wait for that miracle cure, call us now to schedule a hearing exam.
References
https://hsci.harvard.edu/major-step-toward-treatment-leading-form-hearing-loss
https://news.mit.edu/2022/frequency-therapeutics-hearing-regeneration-0329