Q & A

If you have a question or concern, send us an email. A doctor from one of our centers will answer your question in confidence. We may post the Q & A on the blog if space permits to help others who may have the same question, but will not use your name.

My granddaughter has a hearing loss

Question:

My granddaughter is 3 months old. she did not pass the hearing test in the hospital and she have not passed 2 more since the original. They say she can hear high tones in one ear and the other ear has a retracted eardrum and she is not responding at all in that ear. She was born 3 weeks early but had no problems or issues other than this hearing problem. Is this normal? And can the retracted eardrum be corrected with a possibility of her hearing being restored completely? Thank you for any information regarding this situation.

Answer:

It is advantageous to you and your granddaughter to be pro-active when it relates to congenital hearing loss. The earlier the investigation, the better. It sounds as though you are already doing the right thing and are connected to an experienced pediatric hearing center. They should guide you through a stepwise investigation and treatment plan, which may include surgery for eardrum repair and/or cochlear implantation. These decisions are individualized based on the details of each case.

Where is she being treated? If you are in NY and wish an evaluation, I would be happy to help.

Best of luck

Neil M Sperling, MD

New York Otolaryngology Group

36A East 36th Street

New York, New York

www.NYOGMD.com

Associate Professor

Department of Otolaryngology

SUNY-Downstate College of Medicine

Brooklyn, New York

Q & A

Surgery for hearing loss

Question:

I’ve been wearing hearing aids for about 5 years n I still have trouble hearing people clearly, I’m 30 years old and was told as I get older my hearing would get worse. I would like to know am I eligible to have surgery to restore hearing?

Answer:

Thanks for your question. Today, luckily, there are many options for those of us with hearing losses. However, I cannot answer your individual question without knowing what kind of hearing loss you have.

Sensori-neural hearing losses involve damage to the nerves that control our hearing. This can be anywhere from the cochlea in the inner ear- into the brain where the impulses are decoded for us. Hearing losses of this kind are quite common- Most often, this type of loss is treated with the use of hearing aids. Newer digital aids offer exceptional improvements from older ones in terms of clarity. They should be matched to the needs of the individual by a hearing professional- for optimum results.

For those with severe or profound losses, today we are using cochlear implants. These transmit nerve impulses directly to the cochlea to improve hearing in those whose hearing losses can’t be well treated with hearing aids.

Conductive hearing losses are those involving the mechanical transference of sound waves to the inner ear. This can be caused by anything from wax, to holes in the ear drum, to problems with the hearing bones in the middle ear to fluid in the middle ear. These losses usually can be fixed- by removing the wax, repairing the hole in the ear drum, draining the fluid or by surgery to repair the hearing bones in the middle ear (stapedectomy).

Our website www.nyogmd.com has a section that explains how the ear works and hearing disorders in greater depth. Dr. Neil Sperling is the Director of Ear Care at NYOG.

Robert L Pincus MD

hearing loss Archives - Page 3 of 3 - The New York Otolaryngology Group

My granddaughter has a hearing loss

Surgery for hearing loss