What to do if you have presbycusis? Experts: Wear hearing aids in time

As people age, their hearing in both ears will progressively decline. Sensorineural hearing loss, which is mainly characterized by high-frequency hearing loss, is called presbycusis, which is mainly caused by hearing dysfunction due to the aging of the auditory system. Since the pathogenesis of presbycusis has not been clearly studied, drug and surgical treatments are not mature. Commonly used treatments in clinical practice are wearing hearing aids and cochlear implants.

1. How to determine whether you have hearing loss?

If you experience 2-3 of the following situations, you may have hearing loss and it is recommended that you go to the hospital for treatment in time:

1. You can hear the sound but cannot clearly understand the content

2. Feeling of buzzing in the head or ears

3. Often interrupting or asking the other person to repeat themselves during face-to-face communication

4. It’s hard to join in a conversation in a noisy place

5. Regardless of the location, the volume of speech will unconsciously increase

6. The phone call is not smooth, and the other party is often asked to increase the volume

7. I can’t hear the birds singing anymore…

2. Under what circumstances is it appropriate to wear hearing aids?

For mild hearing loss with an average hearing threshold of 26-40dBHL, it is recommended to consider wearing hearing aids; for moderate hearing loss with an average hearing threshold of 41-60dBHL, hearing aids should be worn in a timely manner.

For cases of severe or profound hearing loss in both ears and unsatisfactory speech recognition, cochlear implant surgery may be considered.

3. What are the misunderstandings about hearing aids?

People often have misunderstandings about hearing aids and are therefore reluctant to wear them. These common misunderstandings include:

1. Will wearing hearing aids make you more deaf the longer you wear them?

Fitting hearing aids in professional institutions will not only not harm residual hearing, but also help you hear sounds, maintain continuous stimulation of the auditory center, and delay the deterioration of hearing and sound discrimination ability. Therefore, please go to a hospital or a professional hearing fitting institution to choose hearing aids.

2. Wait until you can no longer hear before re-enforcing it?

If hearing problems are not dealt with in time, it will lead to decreased sensitivity to sound, the brain will not receive sound stimulation for a long time, and the ability to distinguish speech will decrease. When the hearing function of the brain is damaged, wearing hearing aids will only amplify the sound, but will not be able to distinguish speech, resulting in a situation where "you can hear but not understand". Therefore, the earlier the problem is discovered and the earlier it is worn, the better the effect of hearing aids will be.

3. Can hearing aids completely replace human ears?

Hearing aids cannot replace human ears, but are only a tool to assist hearing. They compensate for the sound according to the hearing condition of the hearing-impaired patient, but cannot process and distinguish the sound in detail. Studies have shown that the hearing aid effect will be better after continuous training with language stimulation after wearing hearing aids.

4. What are the benefits of wearing hearing aids?

Wearing hearing aids can protect the residual hearing of the elderly and slow down the trend of hearing loss; improve communication skills and increase social activities; improve mental state and maintain mental health; promote family harmony and happiness and improve the quality of life; and reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

As they age, the hearing of the elderly gradually deteriorates, and the sounds of the world gradually fade away from them. Early detection of presbycusis and early selection of suitable hearing aids can help the elderly better hear the sounds of the world!

This article was scientifically reviewed by Professor Zhang Yaqing from the School of Nursing at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Contributed by "Da Yi Xiao Hu"