Hearing loss

Hearing loss is a gradual or sudden loss in how well you hear. You can have hearing loss at any age if there is a problem with part of your ear. Hearing loss can be mild, moderate, severe or profound. It can be temporary and improve with treatment (reversible), or it can be permanent. 

If you have hearing loss, you might:

• Have muffled hearing
• Feel like your ear is plugged
• Have trouble understanding what people are saying, especially if there is background noise
• Listen to the radio or TV at a higher volume than before

Common causes of hearing loss include:

• Aging: As you get older, your inner ear changes, which can cause hearing loss. This type of hearing loss is permanent.
• Noise: Everyday loud noises like music or a lawn mower can hurt your inner ear and cause hearing loss over time. Sudden loud noises, like an explosion, can also cause hearing loss. This type of hearing loss is also permanent. 

Some other causes of hearing loss are head or ear injuries, earwax buildup and ear infections. Some medicines can also cause hearing loss. You can also be born with hearing problems. 

If you have hearing loss, your family or friends might notice it first. It is not usually dangerous, but it can affect your safety and your ability to work. It can also impact how you communicate with other people and your enjoyment of life.

To diagnose hearing loss your doctor will:

• Do a physical exam and ask you about your symptoms and health history.
• Look in your ears with an otoscope. This is a special tool with a light on it.

If your doctor thinks you have hearing loss, they will recommend hearing tests. These tests will check what type of hearing loss you have and also to find out how severe it is.

If you have a complex ear or hearing problem, your doctor can refer you to the ENT (ear, nose and throat) Otolaryngology Clinic at St. Paul’s Hospital:

• You may be sent to the St. Paul’s Hospital Rotary Hearing Clinic for a hearing screening before or after your appointment. This testing can help to diagnose hearing loss.
• The ENT doctor might send you for more detailed tests. These will be with an audiologist at the Audio-Vestibular Diagnostic Clinic. These tests can find out the type of hearing loss you have and how severe it is.

The Audiology team at St. Paul’s Hospital offers special hearing and balance/dizziness testing. For example:

• Central auditory processing disorder (CAPD) testing
• Videonystagmography (VNG) testing
• Auditory Evoked Potential testing
  • Auditory Brainstem Response testing
  • Slow Cortical Potential testing
• Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMP) testing
• Vestibular Head Impulse (vHIT) testing

The Audiology Department does not dispense hearing aids. If you need hearing aids, you can find resources in the community to help you.

Providence Health Care’s Audiology team can help to treat your hearing loss. Our team of audiologists work closely with ENT specialists, psychiatrists, and social workers. We work together to help people with hearing and balance problems. 

Your treatment will depend on the type and cause of your hearing loss. 

Reversible hearing loss

ENTs can often treat reversible hearing loss. The treatment depends on the cause. For example, taking medicine for an infection or removing earwax.

Permanent hearing loss

If you have permanent hearing loss, treatment will not bring back your hearing to normal. But, there are hearing devices that can help you hear and communicate better. 

• Hearing aids are recommended if you have conductive or sensorineural hearing losses. We do not dispense hearing aids. A registered hearing instrument practitioner or dispensing audiologist in the community can help you. 
• Alerting devices can help alert you to sounds around the house like the phone or doorbell.
• Assistive listening devices can help you to hear in situations where hearing aids alone do not provide enough benefit.  For example, remote microphones help you to hear from a distance or in background noise.  
• Cochlear implants might be an option if your hearing loss is so severe that hearing aids do not work for you. A cochlear implant does not bring your hearing back to normal, but it can help you to access sounds. Over time, most recipients learn to understand speech in ideal listening situations.

The Audiology Department is home to the BC Adult Cochlear Implant Program.

Advances in treatments are all thanks to medical research. While participating in research is a decision you should make for yourself in consultation with your care team, there is much activity in this area so please ask us about our research programs if you’re interested.

By taking part in research, you can help us all learn more about advancing health outcomes and find better ways to help people live and thrive. While you cannot assume benefit to yourself, your participation can make a difference in improving care for future patients.

The following clinical trials are currently enrolling volunteers. Please ask your care team for more information or contact the research team listed on each study or trial. For other information about research at Providence Health Care, please visit Providence Research.