Can I make do with poor hearing in one ear?

In life, it is common for a friend to suddenly or gradually lose hearing in one ear, or even completely lose hearing. Many people do not take it seriously or the treatment does not have a significant effect, so they just accept it silently, thinking that since one ear can still hear, let's make do! So, from a medical point of view, can we really make do? Our two ears are not just for show, they naturally have two functions. Let's learn about the benefits of hearing with both ears.

What are the benefits of hearing with both ears?

1. Receiving sound signals through both ears will make the perceived loudness stronger and contain more information, which is equivalent to the difference between seeing things with both eyes and with one eye. This cumulative effect enhances speech comprehension.

2. The sounds emitted by different sound sources are different. Binaural listening can produce time and intensity differences between the ears. Our brain can use these differences to distinguish different sound sources, thereby enhancing speech recognition in noise, and even selectively listening to a certain sound in a noisy environment.

3. The difference in intensity, time and timbre of the sound obtained by the two ears can be used to locate the sound source, and listening with both ears at the same time will produce a stereo effect.

4. Listening with both ears can improve the understanding and discrimination of music. Studies have shown that auditory memory of listening with both ears is better than that of listening with one ear.

5. Binaural listening can better stimulate the development of the central nervous system, especially during the hearing development period and hearing rehabilitation stage of young children, and can delay the functional decline of the auditory center.

What are the effects of single-ear hearing?

1. Poor sound localization and lack of three-dimensional sense. It goes without saying that this situation is very dangerous when driving, crossing the road and playing sports.

2. Difficulty communicating in noisy environments. You will experience awkward communication at the dinner table or in the mall, and miss important information.

3. A decline in your ability to distinguish sounds will make you lose the joy of enjoying wonderful music.

4. It is very important to note that due to the reduction of sound stimulation in the affected ear, it will lead to auditory deprivation and degeneration. The auditory center on the affected side will degenerate and even eventually affect the healthy ear.

What should I do if there is a problem with one ear ?

1. If you have just experienced this problem, please go to the hospital as soon as possible. One to two weeks is the golden period for treatment. Do not give up hope within three months.

2. If after examination you are found to have conductive hearing loss in the affected ear, it is mostly caused by diseases such as middle ear lesions, interruption or deformity of the ossicular chain, and otosclerosis. In most cases, good results can be achieved through surgery.

3. If you are born with unilateral deafness or acquired sensorineural hearing loss, and it has lasted for a long time, you should first go to the hospital for a check-up to rule out neurological diseases and congenital related diseases.

If the affected ear still has residual hearing, then wearing a hearing aid is the simplest and most effective way. If the affected ear does not have residual hearing, you can choose a bone conduction hearing aid or a binaural hearing aid on the affected side. The device collects the sound on the affected side and processes it in the healthy ear. If financial conditions permit, patients with extremely severe hearing loss in the affected ear can use a cochlear implant.

It is important to listen with both ears, don’t settle for being deaf in one ear!