Millions of years ago, the world was a lot different. This steamy, volcano-laden landscape is where the long-necked Diplacusis roamed. Diplacusis was so big, due to its long tail and neck, that no other predators were a threat.
Actually, the long-necked dinosaur from the Jurassic Period is called Diplodocus. When you’re hearing two sounds simultaneously, that’s a hearing condition known as diplacusis.
While it’s not a “terrible lizard,” in many ways diplacusis can be a menace on its own, causing a hearing experience that feels bewildering and out of sorts (frequently making communication challenging or impossible).
Maybe you’ve been hearing some odd things
Usually, we regard hearing loss as our hearing becoming muted or quiet over time. Over time, the idea is, we just hear less and less. But in some cases, hearing loss can manifest in some peculiar ways. One of the most fascinating (or, possibly, frustrating) such manifestations is a condition called diplacusis.
Diplacusis, what is it?
So, what’s diplacusis? Diplacusis is a medical name that means, basically, “double hearing”. Typically, your brain will combine the sound from your right and left ear into a single sound. This blended sound is what you hear. The same thing happens with your eyes. If you place a hand on your right eye and then a hand on your left eye, you see slightly different images, right? Your ears are the same, it’s just that usually, you don’t notice it.
Diplacusis occurs when the hearing abilities of your ears vary so wildly that your brain can no longer blend them, at least not well. You can develop diplacusis because of the hearing loss in one ear (called monaural diplacusis) or both ears (binaural diplacusis).
Diplacusis comes in two forms
Diplacusis doesn’t affect everyone in the same way. However, there are typically two basic types of diplacusis:
- Diplacusis echoica: With this, what you hear will seem off because your brain gets the sound from each ear out of sync with the other rather than hearing two different pitches. This might cause echoes (or, rather, artifacts that sound similar to echoes). This can also cause difficulty in terms of understanding speech.
- Diplacusis dysharmonica: This kind of diplacusis happens when the pitch of the right ear and the pitch of the left ear seem off. So the sound will be distorted when somebody talks to you. One side might sound high-pitched and the other low-pitched. Those sounds can be hard to understand consequently.
Symptoms of diplacusis
Here are some symptoms of diplacusis:
- Hearing echoes where they don’t actually exist.
- Off timing hearing
- Hearing that seems off (in pitch).
The condition of double vision might be a useful comparison: It’s usually a symptom of something else, but it can produce some of its own symptoms. (In other words, it’s the effect, not the cause.) In these circumstances, diplacusis is almost always a symptom of hearing loss (either in one ear or in both ears). So your best strategy would be to Schedule an appointment with us for a hearing test.
What causes diplacusis?
In a very basic sense (and maybe not surprisingly), the causes of diplacusis line up quite nicely with the causes of hearing loss. But you could experience diplacusis for several particular reasons:
- Earwax: Your hearing can be affected by an earwax blockage. Whether that earwax forms a partial or complete blockage, it can lead to diplacusis.
- Your ears have damage related to noise: If you’ve experienced enough loud noises to damage your hearing, it’s possible that the same damage has led to hearing loss, and as a result, diplacusis.
- An infection: Inflammation of your ear canal can be the consequence of an ear infection, sinus infection, or even allergies. This swelling is a typical immune response, but it can impact the way sound waves move through your inner ear (and subsequently your brain).
- A tumor: Diplacusis can, in rare cases, be the result of a tumor in your ear canal. Don’t panic! They’re normally benign. But you still should speak with us about it.
As you can see, diplacusis and hearing loss have many of the same common causes. This means that if you’re experiencing diplacusis, it’s likely that something is interfering with your ability to hear. Which means it’s a good idea to see a hearing specialist.
How is diplacusis treated?
The treatments for diplacusis vary based on the underlying cause. If you have an obstruction, treating your diplacusis will focus on clearing it out. But permanent sensorineural hearing loss is more frequently the cause. In these situations, the best treatment options include:
- Hearing aids: The right set of hearing aids can neutralize how your ears hear again. This means that the symptoms of diplacusis will likely fade. It’s important to get the correct settings on your hearing aids and you’ll want to have us help you with that.
- Cochlear implant: A cochlear implant might be the only way of dealing with diplacusis if the root cause is profound hearing loss.
A hearing test is the first step to getting to the bottom of the problem. Here’s how you can think about it: a hearing exam will be able to determine what kind of hearing loss is at the root of your diplacusis (and, to be fair, you might not even recognize it as diplacusis, you may just think things sound weird these days). We have very sensitive hearing tests nowadays and any discrepancies with how your ears are hearing the world will be found.
Life is more fun when you can hear well
You’ll be better able to enjoy your life when you get the correct treatment for your diplacusis, whether that’s hearing aids or something else. Conversations will be easier. It will be easier to stay in tune with your family.
So there will be no diplacusis symptoms interfering with your ability to hear your grandkids telling you all about the Diplodocus.
If you think you have diplacusis and want to get it checked, call today for an appointment.
