What You Should Know About Hearing Loss
Hearing Loss Facts
- Hearing loss is second only to arthritis as the most common complaint of older adults
- Only about 5% of hearing losses are improved by surgery or other medical treatment
- The vast majority of hearing loss (95%) can be treated with hearing aids
- The majority of people with nerve deafness are helped with hearing aids
- Only 15% of physicians routinely screen for hearing loss. Ask your doctor for a hearing screening since it is not a routine part of physical exams.
- The vast majority of hospitals now offer newborn hearing screening before discharge from the hospital
- Even a mild hearing loss can seriously impact a child's ability to learn in a school environment.
- Successful treatment of hearing loss with hearing aids is associated with greater earning power
- Treatment of hearing loss will improve interpersonal relationships
- Most public places (i.e. movie theatres, place of worship, government building, schools) are required under the American with Disabilities Act to provide assistive listening devices for the hard-of-hearing
- Noise above 80-90 decibels on average over an 8-hour workday is considered hazardous. Professions at risk of hearing loss include firefighters, police officers, factory workers, farmers, construction workers, military personnel, heavy industry workers, musicians, and entertainment industry professionals.
- 1 in 4 workers exposed to high levels of noise will develop a hearing loss
- A live rock concert produces sounds from 110 to 120 decibels'easily high enough to cause permanent damage to hearing over a 2 to 3 hour period. If you have pain in your ears after leaving a noisy area or you hear ringing or buzzing in your ears immediately after exposure to noise consider this a warning sign that the sounds are TOO LOUD.