Treatments For Sudden Hearing Loss
July 2nd, 2009 | by MichaelZ |It has been recognized that hearing impairment takes place when the hair cells of the inner ear , and the neural connectors to the auditory cortex are injured . In the range of around twenty three percent of the population over 65 years of age have some documented degree of having minor to severe hearing impairment. This number will has the momentum to grow as younger, and younger individuals are losing their hearing due to playing to loud music, working in noisy environments, and not using hearing protection .
Treatments For Sudden Hearing Loss
While treatments for abrupt hearing loss can possibly incorporate the use of steroids, vasodilator, antiviral drugs, dietary changes and doctor prescribed diuretics , it’s been witnessed that in nearly 30 to 60 % of the populace that fit the criteria for unexpected sudden hearing loss have spontaneous recovery of hearing without any necessary treatment .
It ought to be noted for individuals with hearing loss seeking treatments for their hearing loss that recovery generally occurs inside two weeks following the unexpected hearing impairment occurrence . This would reveal the reasoning of many hearing specialists are still using anti-inflammatory treatments as a first course of action. Steroids are normally prescribed to patients who is rapid hearing loss . The steroids are either prescribed orally or intravenously for a duration of 2 weeks, but 30 % to 5o% of patients do not show any real improvement to the treatment , and this offers an opportunity for new treatments to be tested and discovered to assist patients with sudden hearing loss .
New more experimental treatments for sudden hearing loss can include giving intratympanic steroid injections into the ear drum, and low level laser therapy. This course of treatment can be in particularly handy for individuals who don’t find benefit from high doses of steroids. It has been observed that by taking these injections into the eardrum, the patients have a shown a propensity toward a higher recovery. There are other treatments being studied for temporary hearing loss, but their effectiveness , and advantage to the patients has still yet to be clinically proven .
Treatments On The Horizon
Hyperbaric oxygen – it is being studied by researchers in Europe as a possible way to increase the inner ear oxygen levels to assist and restore ear cells, and hair. Its clinical results have been little documented , but one advantage is that it has no troublesome side effects. More studies will be to be done to ascertain the true benefit of such a treatment.
Low Level Laser – this treatment has been presented as a twofold treatment . It is considered to offer both worth in treating tinnitus (noise or ringing in the ear) and hearing loss too. It was first studied in the early 1980’s, and a new “Study of Low Level Laser Therapy and Word Recognition in Hearing Impaired Individuals” is ongoing. Low level laser therapy for hearing loss is suggested to stimulate the mitochondria of the adipocyte cells, in return this increases the creation of ATP, which works to repair the damaged ear hairs and cells. Quite a number patients who have experienced hearing loss , have sought treatment using low level lasers in the US and other countries , and have communicated having some improvement in their hearing loss. The laser at theat this time is intended more for sufferers of tinnitus who are looking for other forms of treatment. Most tinnitus sufferers are thrilled with the success the low level laser is providing as a sucessful treatment for their upsetting tinnitus. The medical community and those patients of sudden hearing loss and temporary hearing loss, and other forms of hearing loss will continue to wait for better treatment options to become available. That is why it is so important to protect your hearing while you still have it!
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Sudden Hearing Loss Symptoms Causes & Treatments
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