Hearing impairment

Hearing may seem like a simple process, but a sound takes a long trip through various parts of the ear before it reaches your brain. Even if one part of the ear is damaged, you experience hearing difficulties.

There are 4 types of hearing loss:

• Conductive hearing loss occurs when sounds cannot pass through the outer and middle ear.
• Sensorineural hearing loss results from inner ear damage. People struggle to hear soft sounds with both of these types, while louder sounds get muffled.
• Mixed hearing loss is a combination of the first two types.
• Auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder occurs when the sound passes the inner ear but doesn't reach the brain. Individuals may hear sounds but struggle with recognizing spoken words.

The most common reasons that cause hearing disabilities include genetic disorders, injuries to the head or ears, complications during pregnancy or birth, infections, medications, or even loud noise.