Listen Up About Ear Health

By Wendy Lederer, M.S., audiologist

May is Better Hearing and Speech Month, so it’s the perfect time to focus on something many of us take for granted: ear health. It makes sense that those of us who are frequently surrounded by loud noises, such as live music, airplanes, and race cars, need to take special precaution to our protect ears. But the increased use of cell phones and personal listening devices, as well as exposure to everyday noises, can have a negative effect on anyone’s ability to hear.

Adults should have baseline hearing tests before age 30 and rechecks every five years. Some medications and medical conditions can cause hearing loss, as can frequent exposure to loud noises—people with these risk factors should be especially careful.

Anytime you work around noise you must protect your ears. Foam plugs are okay to use once in a while, but if you need constant protection you should invest in custom-fitted hearing protectors or noise reducing ear muffs.

In addition to protecting your ears from potentially damaging noises, keeping small objects out of the ear canal is essential to maintaining good ear health. This includes Q-tips, which are designed only for ear exteriors.

Some hearing problems are not due to external factors and may occur as early as birth. To help catch potential problems as early as possible, newborn hearing screenings are now offered at most hospitals. When babies suffer hearing loss, they may immediately be fitted for a hearing aid. My youngest patient was just two months old.

Hearing aids have come a long way. Most are now digital, provide better sound clarity than their predecessors, and are designed for active people. They are available with many styles and functions.

When a hearing aid is not powerful enough, cochlear implants may be an alternative. Cochlear implants require a surgical procedure through which electrodes are implanted in the inner ear and connected to a magnetic hearing-type device that picks up sounds through a microphone. Afterward, hearing may be a little less clear than normal, but it’s still remarkable—especially when you witness someone hearing for the first time.


Contact:
Russell Neilson, supervisor, communications and marketing, 707-554-5123