A person is considered to have a hearing impairment when he or she cannot hear sounds clearly under normal circumstances. A person suffering from a hearing impairment may complain that voices sound muffled or need to turn radios, televisions, and other sound-producing items up to a level that is uncomfortable for those with normal hearing.
Hearing impairment can have many causes. The most common of them, however, is excessive exposure to loud noises. This can include working in noisy construction or manufacturing occupations and not using adequate hearing protection, or listening to music too loudly, either with or without headphones.
Other causes can include injury, including a blow to the head or other injury that causes damage to the eardrum or other parts of the ear. Less frequently, hearing impairment can occur because of an unusual reaction to medication or even as a result of the presence of a tumor, whether benign or malignant.
Some illnesses can result in hearing impairment. The German measles, for example, are known to cause hearing impairment if a mother is exposed to and contracts this disease during pregnancy. Fortunately, vaccination programs have led to a decline in this more dangerous of causes.
The propensity to hearing impairment can also be genetic. If a person notices that other family members, especially older ones, all seem to suffer from hearing problems, that person may want to start taking precautions to protect the hearing he or she still has. Genetics is, unfortunately, one of the causes that can’t be “fixed”, but its effects can be reduced.
Thu, Apr 15, 2010
Health