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Hearing LossChecklist
The following checklist gives you an idea of your hearing status and whether you are likely to have a hearing loss. Please answer to the following questions:
If you say “yes” to more than two questions, we suggest you make an appointment with our audiologists for a full audiological assessment and professional advices on rehabilitation.
The ear is a very complex organ comprising three parts: the outer ear, the middle ear and the inner ear. Hearing loss can result from an obstruction or damage to any of these three parts.
Sound transmission process:
Pinna catches sound waves and directs them into the ear canal. Ear canal carries the sound waves to the eardrum (tympanic membrane).
Sound waves cause the eardrum (tympanic membrane) to vibrate. The bones in the middle ear (malleus, incus and stapes) pick up these vibrations.
Vibrations pass through the oval window to the cochlea, setting the fluid inside in motion. This causes special nerve cells to turn the sound waves into electrical impulses. The auditory nerve sends these electrical impulses to the brain where they are heard as sound.
Ear Structure Diagram
The severity of a hearing impairment is categorized according to how much louder a sound must be made over the usual levels before the listener can detect it. Normal hearing people can hear sounds as soft as 25 dB HL. Hearing level exceeds this normal range is considered as hearing loss. The degree of hearing loss is universally classified into 5 categories: mild, moderate, moderately severe, severe and profound.
Normal Hearing
(<25dB)
Able to hear soft sounds and understand speech clearly
Mild hearing loss
(26-40dB)
Unable to hear soft sounds, difficult in understanding speech in noisy environments.
Moderate hearing
(41-55dB)
Unable to hear moderately loud sounds, difficult in understanding speech, can be improved with suitable hearing instruments.
Moderately severe hearing loss
(56-70dB)
Increasing difficulty in hearing and speech understanding. Communication can be improved with the use of hearing instruments.
Severe hearing loss
(71-90dB)
Able to hear loud sounds but communication without hearing instrument is impossible.
Profound hearing loss
(>91dB)
Some profoundly hearing loss people cannot hear anything at all, at any level of decibels.
Able to hear soft sounds and understand speech clearly
Unable to hear soft sounds, difficult in understanding speech in noisy environments.
Unable to hear moderately loud sounds, difficult in understanding speech, can be improved with suitable hearing instruments.
Increasing difficulty in hearing and speech understanding. Communication can be improved with the use of hearing instruments.
Able to hear loud sounds but communication without hearing instrument is impossible.
Some profoundly hearing loss people cannot hear anything at all, at any level of decibels.
<25dB
26-40dB
41-55dB
56-70dB
71-90dB
>91dB
Hearing impairment comes from different biologic causes. Type of hearing loss could be classified into 3 types according to the causes: Conductive hearing loss, sensorineural hearing loss and mixed hearing loss.
Conductive Hearing loss
Conductive hearing loss results from an abnormality of the outer or middle ear, which results in a loss of loudness. Some common causes include infection in the middle ear, perforated ear drum, excessive ear wax blockage and otoscelerosis, etc.
Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by damage to the inner ear or hearing nerve, which results in a loss of loudness and clarity of speech perceived. A sensorineural loss can result from virus infection, disease, aging, certain drugs and excessive noise, etc.
Mixed hearing loss is caused by damage to the outer/middle ear and the inner ear. Typically, sound waves are not conducted efficiently through the middle ear, and once they reach the inner ear the vibrations cannot be picked up or sent to the brain. Therefore, a mixed hearing loss is the combination of a conductive and sensorineural hearing loss.
The impact of hearing loss varies from person to person. It greatly depends on the degree and configuration of hearing loss. However, hearing loss would, at least to certain extent, results in distorted or incomplete communication which leads to greater isolation and withdrawal. In turn the individual's life space and social life becomes restricted. While for those who are still in the workforce, uncorrected hearing loss has a negative impact on overall job effectiveness, opportunity for promotion and perhaps lifelong earning power.
We would guide you through the following three types of solutions for hearing loss:
Medical Treatment Medication and surgery
Medical Treatment Medication and surgery are recommended for many types of hearing problems, particularly conductive hearing loss. It is always highly recommended to seek medical consultation or hearing evaluation as early as possible once sudden hearing deterioration was noted. Recovery of the hearing loss depends not only upon the early diagnosis of the cause of the hearing loss, but also on the early initiation of appropriate treatment.
If your hearing impairment does not originate from a medical problem, which can be treated with medicine or surgery, a hearing aid evaluation can be performed. Although hearing aids do not provide normal hearing to the user, they can help improve a hearing impaired person's ability to communicate effectively. Hearing technology has seen some incredible advances during the last few years. Digital hearing aids are programmed by audiologists via computers. Complex calculations provide the ultimate flexibility in providing individualized solutions to hearing loss. Adapting to a hearing aid takes patience. The process has to be done step by step, never all at once at full strength. Meanwhile, support from friends and family members are also critical for a successful fitting process.
An ALD is any type of device that can help you function better in your day-to-day communication situations. It can be used with or without hearing aids to overcome the negative effects of distance, background noise, or poor room acoustics. There are basically four types of ALDs: 1) FM Systems; 2) Telephone Amplifiers; 3) Listening & Alerting Device; & 4) TV & Audio Device. To obtain personalized advice on hearing aid and/or ALD, please consult our audiologists.
Basically, hearing aid is an electric amplifying device designed to make sounds audible to the individual with hearing loss. A hearing aid is composed by three components: microphone, amplifier and receiver. Thanks to increasing small micro-processor, the latest digital hearing aids are able to transform acoustic signals into a binary code at high speed and with great precision. Complex calculations provide the ultimate flexibility in providing individualized solutions to hearing loss. Many new features and benefits can be found on digital hearing aids, such as: digital zooming, noise reduction.
Most of us have experienced tinnitus in various degrees. To cope with this problem, firstly, let's understand the basic of tinnitus: tinnitus is not illness, it's only a symptom. The goal of tinnitus treatment is to reduce the annoyance caused by this symptom.
Phonak Hong Kong has developed comprehensive tinnitus assessment services. By analyzing patients' symptom in depth, we can provide professional follow up services, and choose the appropriate treatment method.
Q07
Don't underestimate otitis media!
Otitis media is a common disease to children. Since their eustachian tube is not fully developed yet, they are facing a higher risk of bacteria infection, which will cause occlusion or swelling. If a child's otitis media is not carefully treated; it may damage his/her hearing and hence hinders his/her learning and speech development; in worst case, meningitis may occur.
For the case if adults, although their eustachian tube is completely grown, air-pressure during travelling on plane, diving and other damage to eardrum are still able to cause otitis media. Symptoms of otitis media is listed as the following:
Infant and children
Teenagers and adults
Infant and children
Hearing Loss
Crying and anxiety
Fever
Vomiting
Fluids in ears
Pain in ears
Pressure and swelling in ears
Hearing loss
Feeling dizzy and losing sense of balance
Vomiting
Fluids in ears
Fever
Q08
Only 50% of hearing remains? How?
We often see others using percentage to describe one's hearing level. However, this is not an accurate indication for auditory conditions. Everybody has a different level of hearing, which enables receiving sounds of different volumes and frequencies. Thus, a hearing test is essential to determine the type and level of hearing loss, so as to provide right treatment.
弱聽程度
能接收的最低音量範圍 (分貝)
正常／沒有聽力問題
≤ 25
輕度
26 – 40
中度
41 – 55
中重度
56 – 70
重度
71 – 90
極度
> 90
健全的聽覺系統指在各音頻都能接收低於25分貝的訊息。
當懷疑聽力出現問題時，建議盡快約見聽力學家進行詳細聽力檢測﹗
Q09
Is it OK to not wear my hearing aids?
It is common to see people having difficulties when trying to adapt their hearing aids at the beginning. They may find the hearing aid is too loud/too quiet, or the sound is not comfortable for them.
To improve the listening experience, it is important to ask your audiologists to adjust the hearing aids for you. Audiologist will fine tune the hearing aids according to your requirements, so as to provide a sufficient volume gain and protect your residual hearing.
