Every day scientists are coming up with new cures. That can be a good thing and a bad thing. You might think that you don’t really have to be all that careful about your hearing because you read some encouraging research about possible future cures for deafness. You’ll feel like they will probably have a cure for deafness by the time you will exhibit any symptoms of hearing loss.
That’s not a smart idea. Without question, it’s better to protect your hearing while you have it. There is some amazing research emerging which is revealing some awesome strides toward successfully treating hearing loss.
Hearing loss stinks
Hearing loss is simply something that happens. It doesn’t mean you’re a negative person or you did something wrong or you’re being punished. It just… is. But developing hearing loss has some major disadvantages. Not only can you hear less, but the disorder can affect your social life, your mental health, and your overall health. Neglected hearing loss can even result in a greater risk of depression and dementia. There’s plenty of evidence to connect neglected hearing loss to issues like social isolation.
Hearing loss is, generally speaking, a degenerative and chronic situation. So, over time, 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. Even though there is no cure, though, that doesn’t mean it can’t be treated.
If you come see us, we can help slow down the development of your hearing loss and maintain your current levels of hearing. Hearing aids are often the form of treatment that will be most appropriate for most types of hearing loss. So there are treatments for most individuals but there’s no cure. And your quality of life will be greatly improved by these treatments.
Hearing loss comes in two main kinds
There are differences in kinds of hearing loss. There are two primary categories of hearing loss. You can treat one and the other can be cured. Here’s how it breaks down:
- Conductive hearing loss: When the ear canal gets blocked by something, you get this type of hearing loss. Maybe it’s a clump of earwax (a little gross, but it happens). Maybe it’s swelling from an ear infection. Whatever it is, there’s something physically stopping sound waves from moving up to your inner ear. This kind of hearing loss can indeed be cured, normally by removing the blockage (or treating whatever is causing the obstruction in the first place).
- Sensorineural hearing loss: This form of hearing loss is irreversible. Vibrations in the air are sensed by delicate hairs in your ears called stereocilia. These vibrations can be translated to sound by your brain. As you go through life, these hairs become damaged, by loud sound typically. And once they are damaged, the hairs no longer function. And when this happens your ability to hear becomes impaired. There’s currently no way to restore these hairs, and your body doesn’t make new ones naturally. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Sensorineural hearing loss treatments
Sensorineural hearing loss may be irreversible but that doesn’t mean it can’t be treated. The goal of any such treatment is to allow you to hear as much as possible given your hearing loss. The goal is to help you hear conversations, improve your situational awareness, and keep you functioning independently through life.
So, what are these treatment strategies? Common treatments include the following.
Hearing aids
Hearing aids are likely the single most prevalent means of treating hearing loss. Hearing aids can be specially tuned to your particular hearing needs, so they’re especially beneficial. Wearing a hearing aid will let you better understand conversations and communicate with others during your daily life. Many of the symptoms of social solitude can be staved off by wearing hearing aids (and the risk of depression and dementia as a result).
Having your own pair of hearing aids is extremely common, and there are many styles to choose from. In order to identify which model is suited to your taste and degree of hearing loss, you’ll have to come see us for a consultation.
Cochlear implants
Often, it will be necessary to bypass the ears altogether if hearing loss is total. A cochlear implant does just that. Surgery is performed to insert this device in the ear. The device picks up on sounds and converts those sounds into electrical energy, which is then transferred directly to your cochlear nerve. This enables your brain to convert those signals into sounds.
Cochlear implants are typically used when hearing loss is total, a condition called deafness. So there will still be treatment options even if you have totally lost your hearing.
Novel advances
New novel ways of treating hearing loss are continuously being researched by scientists.
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 utilize stem cells from your own body. The concept is that these stem cells can then transform into new stereocilia (those tiny hairs inside of your ears). Studies with mammals (like rats and mice) have shown some promise, but some form of prescription stem cell gene therapy is probably still going to be a while.
- Progenitor cell activation: So the stereocilia in your ear are being produced by your body’s stem cells. The stem cells become inactive after they develop stereocilia and are then known as progenitor cells. New treatments seek to reactivate these progenitor cells, encouraging them to once more create new stereocilia. Encouraging outcomes for these new therapies have come from early human trials. There was a substantial improvement, for most patients, in their ability to hear and understand speech. How long before these treatments are widely available, however, isn’t known.
- GFI1 Protein: Some researchers have identified a protein that’s essential to growing new stereocilia. Scientists are hoping that they can get a better concept of how to get these stereocilia to grow back by identifying this protein. Once again, this is one of those therapies that’s more in the “drawing board” phase than the “widely available” phase.
Stay in the moment – address your hearing loss now
There’s a great deal of promise in these innovations. But let’s not forget that none of them are available to the public at this point. Which means that it’s smart to live in the here and now. Be proactive about protecting your hearing.
A miracle cure likely isn’t coming soon, so if you’re coping with hearing loss, call us today to schedule your hearing assessment.
References
https://hsci.harvard.edu/major-step-toward-treatment-leading-form-hearing-loss
https://news.mit.edu/2022/frequency-therapeutics-hearing-regeneration-0329
