New cures are always being discovered. That can be a good thing and a bad thing. You may figure that you really don’t have to be all that vigilant about your hearing because you saw some encouraging research about possible future cures for deafness. By the time you start showing symptoms of hearing loss, you think, they’ll have found the cure for deafness.
That’s not a smart idea. Obviously, safeguarding your hearing now while it’s still in good shape would be the better choice. There is some exciting research coming out which is revealing some amazing advances toward successfully treating hearing loss.
It isn’t any fun to lose your hearing
Hearing loss is just a fact of life. It’s not inevitably because of something you did wrong. It’s just part of the aging process. But there are some clear disadvantages to experiencing hearing loss. Not only can you hear less, but the disorder can impact your social life, your mental health, and your overall health. You will even increase your risk of developing dementia and depression with neglected hearing loss. There’s lots of evidence to connect neglected hearing loss to problems such as social isolation.
In general, hearing loss is a chronic and degenerative problem. This means that there isn’t any cure and, as time passes, it’ll grow worse. That’s not true for every kind of hearing loss, but more on that in a bit. But “no cure” isn’t the same as “no treatment”.
We can help you protect your levels of hearing and slow the progression of hearing loss. Hearing aids are usually the form of treatment that will be most ideal for most types of hearing loss. So, for most people, there’s no cure, but there are treatments. And your quality of life will be immensely improved by these treatments.
Hearing loss comes in two main types
Not all hearing loss is identical. Hearing loss comes in two main categories. You can treat one and the other can be cured. Here’s what you need to know:
- Conductive hearing loss: This kind of hearing loss occurs because something gets in the way and obstructs your ear canal. It may be caused by an accumulation of earwax. Maybe it’s inflammation caused by an ear infection. When something is obstructing your ear canals, whatever it might be, sound waves won’t be capable of getting to your inner ear. This form of hearing loss will be cured when the source of the obstruction is removed.
- Sensorineural hearing loss: This form of hearing loss is more permanent. There are delicate hairs in your ear (called stereocilia) that sense minute vibrations in the air. These vibrations can be interpreted as sound by your brain. Regrettably, these hairs are damaged as you go through life, usually by exceedingly loud sounds. And these hairs stop working after they become damaged. And when this happens your ability to hear becomes diminished. Your body doesn’t naturally regrow these hairs and we presently have no way to mend them. 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 treated. The goal of any such treatment is to let you hear as much as possible given your hearing loss. Keeping you functioning as independently as possible, improving your situational awareness, and allowing you to hear conversations is the objective.
So, what are these treatment methods? Here are some prevalent treatments.
Hearing aids
Hearing aids are probably the single most prevalent method of treating hearing loss. Hearing aids can be specially calibrated to your specific hearing needs, so they’re especially beneficial. Using a hearing aid will let you better understand conversations and interact with others over the course of your daily life. Many of the symptoms of social isolation can be prevented by using hearing aids (and, as a result, lower your risk of dementia and depression).
There are lots of different styles of hearing aid to pick from and they have become a lot more common. In order to determine which model is suited to your taste and level of hearing loss, you’ll have to come see us for a consultation.
Cochlear implants
When hearing loss is total, it often makes sense to bypass the ears entirely. A cochlear implant does exactly that. Surgery is used to put this device in the ear. The device picks up on sounds and translates those sounds into electrical energy, which is then transferred directly to your cochlear nerve. Your brain then interprets those signals as sound.
Cochlear implants are typically used when hearing loss is complete, 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 always being researched by scientists.
These new advances are often geared towards “curing” hearing loss in ways that have previously proven impossible. 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 turn into new stereocilia (those tiny hairs inside of your ears). Studies with animals (like rats and mice) have shown some promise, but some form of prescription stem cell gene therapy is probably still a long way off.
- Progenitor cell activation: So the stereocilia in your ear are being produced by your body’s stem cells. Once the stereocilia develop, the stem cells become inactive, and they are then called progenitor cells. New treatments aim to reactivate these progenitor cells, encouraging them to once again grow new stereocilia. Encouraging results for these new therapies have come from early human trials. There was a significant improvement, for most people, in their ability to hear and comprehend speech. How long before these therapies are widely available, however, isn’t known.
- GFI1 Protein: Some researchers have identified a protein that’s critical to growing new stereocilia. It’s hoped that by finding this protein, scientists will get a better concept of how to get those stereocilia to start growing back. This treatment is really still on the drawing board and isn’t widely available yet.
Live in the moment – deal with your hearing loss now
There’s a great deal of promise in these innovations. But let’s remember that none of them are available to the public at this time. Which means that it’s wise to live in the here and now. Protect your hearing today.
Don’t try and hold out 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