Does hearing loss occur in all people as we age?
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Generally, as the elderly grow older, their hearing condition also declines to a certain extent. Among people over 50 years old, this proportion is as high as 50%, which means that one out of every two elderly people has hearing problems. Does hearing loss occur in old age?
Reasons for hearing loss in the elderly
There are two reasons for senile hearing loss. The first is the natural aging of the auditory organs, and the second is related to living habits, physical diseases, etc.
1. Aging of hearing organs
Our hearing organs generally start to age around the age of 55, and half of people over 60 years old Hearing damage can occur due to organ aging. The elderly's ear canal walls become thinner and the eardrums thicken, leading to presbycusis.
2. Other factors
* Chronic diseases The speed of hearing aging in the elderly is related to physical health, genetic factors, disease factors, etc. For example: high blood pressure, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, arteriosclerosis, diabetes and other diseases can cause hearing loss. In addition, excessive stress and prolonged tinnitus can cause hearing loss.
* Ototoxic drugs
Many drugs can cause hearing loss while treating diseases. Certain damages include aminoglycoside antibiotics (gentamicin, streptomycin, and calamycin), some anti-tumor drugs (carboplatin, cisplatin), and some diuretic drugs.
* Noise environment
The impact of noise on hearing cannot be underestimated. In addition to causing chronic and persistent hearing damage, noise It can also cause acute injuries. If you are inevitably exposed to noise, you must try your best to protect yourself, such as wearing anti-noise earplugs.
3. Characteristics of presbycusis
* Only hears the sound but does not understand its meaning, and always gets interrupted when speaking;
* Can't hear the sound when it's too low, but it's noisy when it's too loud;
* Abnormalities in individual sounds Sensitive, prefer a quiet environment.
It is up to the doctor to decide whether hearing loss can be cured
Is there no cure for hearing loss in the elderly? Wrong! In the treatment of senile hearing loss, we must try to find the cause. Only on this basis can we say whether the disease can be cured or not. As we have mentioned before, the hearing loss in the elderly Decline is not just a factor of increasing age, there may be other causative factors. Therefore, when the elderly discover hearing loss, they should seek medical attention as soon as possible to make timely and correct diagnosis and treatment.
At the same time, Hearing Aids are currently the most commonly used artificial hearing device. They can significantly improve auditory speech communication abilities, and also have a certain effect on the control of tinnitus, which can improve the quality of life of the elderly.< /p> It should be noted that:
Many elderly deaf patients suffer from hearing loss and are not treated in time. Failure to obtain effective hearing compensation will have a serious impact on physical and mental health in the long run. Because they are always unable to hear and understand what others are saying, and are always interrupted when communicating, the elderly will be afraid of being laughed at and causing trouble to others. They will gradually become unwilling to communicate with others, close themselves off, and become lonely, or They become anxious, irritable, like to lose their temper, and are prone to disharmony and conflicts with family members. The proportion of hearing-impaired elderly people suffering from Alzheimer's disease is significantly higher than that of elderly people with normal hearing. This will require wearing a hearing aid.