Jasmine Matos
12 hours ago, at 8:00 AM
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Conductive vs. Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Conductive hearing loss is a condition where sound waves cannot be pass through the inner ear because there is an impediment in the outer and or middle ear. Some of the familiar reasons include inflammation of the ears, presence of a buildup of fluids behind the eardrum, impacted earwax, existence of a hole in the eardrum, or any congenital abnormity that is within the ears (Payne et al ., 2022). CHL impacts mostly on the external or middle ear and produces sounds that are eitherBuzzing or ringing and sometimes it is possible to treat it through medical or surgical procedures.
Unlike SNHL, conductive hearing loss occurs when there is a problem with outer or middle ear or the ear canal; SNHL occurs when there is a problem with the inner ear, also known as the cochlea, or the nerves that connect the ears to the brain (Laren et al ., 2021). This kind of hearing loss is usually irreversible and may be due to presbycusis, exposure to loud noise, head injury, infections, some drugs, and heredity. Sensorineural hearing loss mainly deal with the quality of sounds, where even though they are loud enough one may not be able to understand what is being said.
Evaluating Preventable and Non-Preventable Antecedents of Hearing Loss. To identify risk factors for hearing loss, the following questions can be asked during a patient assessment: Medical History: Have you ever had ear infections, surgeries on your ears? Have you ever been sick by any diseases that include meningitis, mumps, or measles? Are you a present user of any medicines that are known to harm the ears (For instance aminoglycosides, diuretics)?(Tuset et al ., 2024) Exposure: Do you have to occur to noisy sounds at your workplace or during sports and entertainment events? Are you a regular user of earphones or headphones that involves listening to loud music?
Lifestyle and Habits: Does one wear earmuffs/earplugs while operating in noisy areas? Has there been any whimpering sound in your ears (tinnitus) or finding it hard to understand what people are saying when there is background noise? Family History: Has one been having issues with his or her ears or knows of anyone in the family with similar issues with their ears? Symptoms: Have you ever been troubled with dizziness, or balance disorder or vertigo? Have you observed that the type or pitch of the sounds you are able to hear has changed recently?
When done it would help the healthcare providers, to perhaps find out some of the risk factors or perhaps antecedents of hearing loss, which would allow them to refer the client to the appropriate course of action.
References
Payne, T., & Wong, G. (2022). Hearing loss: Conductive versus sensorineural.
InnovAiT,
15(4), 218-225.
Larem, A., Altamimi, Z., & Aljariri, A. (2021). Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SNHL).
Textbook of Clinical Otolaryngology, 111-119.
Tuset, M. P., Eshraghi, A. A., Daval, M., & Ayache, D. (2024). Management of Conductive and/or Mixed Hearing Loss. In
OVERCOMING HEARING LOSS: From Drug Therapy to Cochlear Implant Surgery: Latest Advancements in the Management of Hearing Loss (pp. 65-86).
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