I am currently under neurological investigation for many symptoms. Cognitive impairment, muscle tremors, muscle weakness, fatigue and headaches. I have recently experienced hearing loss in my right ear with feelings of pain and pressure in it. I went to a doctor and they saw no signs of infection so I am now assuming this problem is tied into my other problems. Can hearing loss be a symptom of neurological illness and if so is it permanent? Could it be a symptom of nerve damage. Any help really appreciated, thanks.

Presbycusis is the loss of hearing that gradually occurs in most individuals as they grow older. Hearing loss is a common disorder associated with aging. About 30-35 percent of adults between the ages of 65 and 75 years have a hearing loss. It is estimated that 40-50 percent of people 75 and older have a hearing loss.

The loss associated with presbycusis is usually greater for high-pitched sounds. For example, it may be difficult for someone to hear the nearby chirping of a bird or the ringing of a telephone. However, the same person may be able to hear clearly the low-pitched sound of a truck rumbling down the street.

There are many causes of presbycusis. Most commonly it arises from changes in the inner ear of a person as he or she ages, but presbycusis can also result from changes in the middle ear or from complex changes along the nerve pathways leading to the brain. Presbycusis most often occurs in both ears, affecting them equally. Because the process of loss is gradual, people who have presbycusis may not realize that their hearing is diminishing.

What are the symptoms of Presbycusis?

With presbycusis, sounds often seem less clear and lower in volume. This contributes to difficulty hearing and understanding speech. Individuals with presbycusis may experience several of the following:

•The speech of others seems mumbled or slurred.

•High-pitched sounds such as “s” and “th” are difficult to hear and tell apart.

•Conversations are difficult to understand, especially when there is background noise.

•A man’s voice is easier to hear than the higher pitches of a woman’s voice.

•Certain sounds seem annoying or overly loud.

•Tinnitus (a ringing, roaring, or hissing sound in one or both ears) may also occur.

What are the causes of Presbycusis?

Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by disorders of the inner ear or auditory nerve. Presbycusis is usually a sensorineural hearing disorder. It is most commonly caused by gradual changes in the inner ear. The cumulative effects of repeated exposure to daily traffic sounds or construction work, noisy offices, equipment that produces noise, and loud music can cause sensorineural hearing loss. Sensorineural hearing loss is most often due to a loss of hair cells (sensory receptors in the inner ear). This can occur as a result of hereditary factors as well as aging, various health conditions, and side effects of some medicines (aspirin and certain antibiotics).

Presbycusis may be caused by changes in the blood supply to the ear because of heart disease, high blood pressure, vascular (pertaining to blood vessels) conditions caused by diabetes, or other circulatory problems. The loss may be mild, moderate, or severe.

Sometimes presbycusis is a conductive hearing disorder, meaning the loss of sound sensitivity is caused by abnormalities of the outer ear and/or middle ear. Such abnormalities may include reduced function of the tympanic membrane (the eardrum) or reduced function of the three tiny bones in the middle ear that carry sound waves from the tympanic membraine to the inner ear.

What can be done?

Much of the hearing loss caused by noise exposure can be prevented. Awareness of potential sources of damaging noises, such as firearms, snowmobiles, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, woodworking machinery and loud appliances is important. Ear plugs or special fluid-filled ear muffs can give protection and should be worn to help avoid the possibility of damage to hearing. Excessively loud everyday noises, both at home and at work, can pose a risk to a person’s hearing. Avoiding loud noises and reducing the amount of time one is exposed to everyday noises may be helpful.

There are many strategies to help people with presbycusis. Hearing aids may be recommended for some individuals. Assistive listening devices can provide further improvement in hearing ability in certain situations. One example of such a device is the built-in telephone amplifier. Another example is FM systems that make sounds clearer, with or without a hearing aid, by delivering sound waves like a radio. Training in speechreading (using visual cues to determine what is being spoken) can help those with presbycusis to understand better what is being said in conversations or presentations.

Hearing loss

in adults has many causes such as disease or infection, ototoxic drugs, exposure to noise, tumors, trauma, and the aging process. This loss may or may not be accompanied by tinnitus, ringing in the ears. Tinnitus can occur by itself without any hearing loss.

Some causes of hearing loss in adults are described below:

Otosclerosis

is a disease involving the middle ear capsule, specifically affecting the movement of the stapes (one of the three tiny bones in the middle ear).

Meniere’s disease

affects the membranous inner ear and is characterized by deafness, dizziness (vertigo), and ringing in the ear (tinnitus).

Medications

used to manage some diseases are damaging to the auditory system (ototoxic) and cause hearing loss. Some of the specific drugs known to be ototoxic are aminoglycoside antibiotics (such as streptomycin, neomycin, kanamycin); salicylates in large quantities (aspirin), loop diuretics (lasix, ethacrynic acid); and drugs used in chemotherapy regimens (cisplatin, carboplatin, nitrogen mustard).

Exposure

to harmful levels of noise results in noise-induced hearing loss . The prolonged exposure causes damage to the hair cells in the cochlea and results in permanent hearing loss. The noise-induced hearing loss usually develops gradually and painlessly. Hearing loss can also occur as a result of an acoustic trauma, or a single exposure or very few exposures to very high levels of sound.

Acoustic neuroma

is an example of a tumor that causes hearing loss. Acoustic neuromas arise in the eighth cranial nerve (acoustic nerve). The first symptom is reduction of hearing in one ear accompanied by a feeling of fullness.

Trauma

can also result in hearing loss. Examples include fractures of the temporal bone, puncture of the eardrum by foreign objects, and sudden changes in air pressure.

Loss of hearing as a result of the aging process is called

Presbycusis

. The process involves degeneration of the inner ear (cochlea). Presbycusis can also involve other parts of the auditory system. The hearing loss is progressive in nature with the high frequencies affected first. While the process begins after age 20, it is typically at ages 55 to 65 that the high frequencies in the speech range begin to be affected.

The idea just popped into my head last night that I could do a research project to see if this is the case. Especially with the popularity of the airtight earbud and after reading about lawsuits against apple for hearing loss, I really wonder if all of this loud music is widening our ear canals or making our eardrums less sensitive over generations. Hm, maybe it’s the style of earphones that’s the culprit, since some people like listening really loud, compression or not.