The Impact of Single-Sided Deafness

Do you have a preferred ear for listening purposes? Which is your “better” ear? The ear you prefer makes listening to conversations easier, especially on the telephone. But what if your better ear has profound hearing loss or single-sided deafness (SSD) or even the other ear? What helps to communicate besides American Sign Language?

Unilateral hearing loss is when you you lose hearing in one ear. SSD is called profound unilateral hearing loss. It refers to a loss greater than 91 dB. With SSD, hearing has been lost in one ear, while the other ear is nearly normal or normal. Although hearing loss can be in both ears, SSD means only one ear is usable and the bad ear can’t be aided.

Hearing with two ears is important

Only hearing with one ear makes life really difficult. It is exhausting trying to hear in challenging listening situations when you can’t hear with both ears, particularly since the auditory system is designed to channel sound into both ears. It helps us find where sounds are originating from and raises the overall volume. Conversations with one person may not be too bad, but in a noisy environment it can cause a lot of strain in trying to separate noise from speech.

The causes of single-sided deafness

Viral and bacterial infections, trauma, circulatory disorders, and acoustic neuroma are recognized causes of SSD. Sudden idiopathic hearing loss, however, is the name given when the cause of SSD can’t be explained.

SSD and non-surgical treatment
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There are special hearing aids that are designed to direct sound from the bad ear to the good ear, restoring the sensation of hearing in both ears. Therefore, there is relief available from the impact of SSD. If you have any kind of hearing loss, please contact a hearing instrument specialist at Pure Sound Hearing Aids for your options.

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