Growing up is quite the adventure
But with a hearing problem, it’s an adventure that’s hard to navigate no matter how courageous the spirit.
Even though it’s essential to social, emotional, and cognitive development, hearing is often one of the senses that is medically overlooked. Early identification and treatment of hearing loss in children can lessen the negative impacts that the loss will have on a child’s development, giving them the opportunity to live up to their full potential both socially and academically.
Categories of Hearing Loss
Hearing loss can be measured in degrees, ranging from mild to moderate and profound. Hearing loss in children typically falls into three main categories.
- The most common, conductive hearing loss, is associated with conditions in the external or middle ear that block the transmission of sound. These conditions can include ear infection, fluid in the ear, impacted earwax, a perforated eardrum, a foreign object in the canal, or birth defects that alter the canal. Many of these are treatable through minor procedures or surgery.
- Sensorineural loss, also known as “nerve deafness,” is the second type. This occurs when damage to the inner ear, or to nerve pathways from the inner ear, interfere with the brain’s ability to process sound. Most often, if a child is born with sensorineural hearing loss, it is congenital, meaning it was present at birth. It can also be caused by the mother’s use of ototoxic drugs (drugs that damage hearing) during pregnancy, a low birth weight, or treatments that were prescribed for a number of other medical conditions. Although there is no cure for this type of hearing loss, in most cases, hearing aids and a family-centered care plan are effective treatments.
- Mixed hearing loss is a combination of conductive and sensorineural hearing loss, and it may include damage to the outer or middle ear as well as the inner ear or auditory nerve. Treatment options are based primarily on how much of the hearing loss is correctable through surgery, drugs, or other methods. The remaining hearing loss is usually treatable with hearing aids.
Symptoms of Pediatric Hearing Loss
Hearing loss can be difficult enough for adults to detect, let alone children, who aren’t always able to articulate the source of their difficulties in life. There are a number of signs to look for if you’re concerned that your child may be suffering from a hearing loss.