Outer Ear Hearing Loss is also referred to as conductive hearing loss. This type of hearing loss happens when sounds cannot pass through the outer ear to the middle ear. Patients with this condition often struggle to hear soft sounds, and louder sounds can be muffled.
The common symptoms of hearing loss are:
This kind of hearing loss can be caused by a variety of different things:
Risk factors for outer ear hearing loss are:
Diagnosis of hearing loss involves a hearing test that identifies which sounds are hard or impossible for a patient to hear. If there is ear pain present, your doctor might look for causes like infection, damage to the ear, or objects in the ear. Tuning fork tests can help to determine which part of the ear is impacted by hearing loss. Audiometer testing can be done by an audiologist to see which ranges of sound are the most difficult for a person to hear.
Treatment of this kind of hearing loss depends on the reason for the hearing loss. If there is earwax in the inner ear, this will need to be removed. Surgery can be done to eliminate tumours or to help correct malformations of the ear itself. Hearing aids are a common solution for those with hearing loss, or cochlear implants might be used to help improve hearing.
Prevention of hearing loss involves protecting your ears from loud noise. Plastic earplugs or glycerine-filled earmuffs should be worn while working in industrial spaces or where there are very loud noises. You should have your hearing tested frequently to ensure that you are not missing the early warning signs of hearing problems that need treatment. Try to avoid sports or hobbies where your ears could be damaged, such as wrestling or things like hunting.