The Truth About Hidden Hearing Loss
Have you received normal results from your hearing test but continue to experience difficulties in hearing, particularly with speech and conversations? You may be encountering a phenomenon known as hidden hearing loss. This condition suggests that while your auditory system can detect sound, there may be an impairment in the signal through the nervous system. In essence, this indicates that you do not have traditional hearing loss; instead, you are experiencing a decline in your ability to process auditory information.
What is Hidden Hearing Loss?
The Symptoms
While there is no documented set of guidelines to help diagnose hidden hearing loss, tell-tale signs include:
• Experiencing hearing loss despite passing a hearing test
• Requiring quiet settings to have conversations
• Finding yourself easily distracted or unable to focus in loud and clangorous surroundings
• Constantly mishearing people
• Emerging research indicates that a connection between tinnitus and hidden hearing loss may exist
The concept that people can have normal hearing screenings but not healthy listening abilities is new to clinicians and researchers. Patients with healthy (or nearly normal) audiograms get overlooked despite experiencing issues. Many audiologists have been unable to diagnose or treat hidden hearing loss. However, many scientists and researchers advocate a new understanding of how humans hear and listen.
A New Theory
Researchers propose that some instances of hidden hearing loss could result from damaged or malfunctioning auditory synapses. This phenomenon results in the incomplete transmission of sound signals to the brain, leading to the omission of critical information necessary to interpret sounds correctly. Clinically, this condition is known as “cochlear synaptopathy.” The synapse theory represents an emergent field of research primarily grounded in investigations with animal models. Doctors and researchers feel there is a need for more investigation to gain a comprehensive understanding of this condition.
However, there are other conditions that can affect hearing, such as:
• Drug-related hearing loss (Ototoxicity)
• A.N.S.D. (Auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder)
• Spatial Auditory disorders
• High-frequency hearing loss
• Mild hearing loss
• Auditory processing disorders
Finding the Proper Test to Detect Hidden Hearing Loss
If an audiologist tells you that a standard “pure-tone” hearing test did not indicate any signs of hearing loss, it is important not to lose hope. More comprehensive testing may be necessary to assess your hearing issues accurately. Seeking a second opinion or consulting with different healthcare providers may help you find a knowledgeable professional to assist you in further evaluation.
According to the Hearing Journal, the following tests may help along with traditional hearing tests used by audiologists or ENT physicians to identify what’s going on and to rule out other causes:
• Hearing reflexes
• Comprehensive high-frequency audiometry
• Diagnostic distortion otoacoustic test
• (SIN) Speech-in-noise test
• (ABR) Auditory brainstem response test