You may have come across the term “hidden hearing loss” and dismissed it. In general, hearing loss is associated with the aging process. However, as more and more young people and teens are showing signs of hearing loss, we need to investigate further. So, what is hidden hearing loss and who is most at risk?
What Is Hidden Hearing Loss?
Currently-available hearing tests cannot detect hidden hearing loss. That’s where this condition’s name stems from. When someone has hidden hearing loss, the nerve cells responsible for transmitting sounds are damaged.
Thus, people who suffer from hidden hearing loss have difficulty making out sounds and voices in noisy places.
What Is the Difference Between Hearing Loss and Hidden Hearing Loss?
In age-related hearing loss can have a variety of causes. However, this type of hearing loss shows signs of damage or wear and tear to one or more parts of the ear. An audiogram can point to the causes.
In contrast, hidden hearing loss is a sign of damage to the nerve cells in the inner ear. Because all other parts of the ear continue to function well, audiograms show no sign of hearing loss.
Nonetheless, because these nerve cells are damaged, identifying sounds in noisy places is difficult for someone who has hidden hearing loss.
Who Is Most at Risk of Hidden Hearing Loss?
So, when you’re asking, what is hidden hearing loss and who is most at risk, you now know the answer to the first part of the question. But who is most at risk? Research suggests that young people who are exposed to loud noise on a regular basis are at considerable risk of developing hidden hearing loss.
Attending live music concerts, as well as listening to music via headphones for several hours a day, is believed to increase the risks significantly.
