What are the causes of hearing loss in the elderly?

For mild, moderate, severe, and very severe cases, it is recommended to go to a hearing center for consultation and hearing check-ups.

As we age, our hearing deteriorates. As early as 2000 years ago, China's medical classic "The Yellow Emperor's Neijing" pointed out: "Fifty years old, weight, ears and eyes are not smart."

According to clinical observation, after the age of 40, the high-frequency hearing threshold above the speech frequency gradually increases with age. Over 60 years of age, hearing loss is of a high-frequency declining type; Over 70 years of age, hearing loss is in the form of full-frequency decline; Over 80 years of age, hearing loss is flat (pictured on the left). The pathogenesis of presbycusis is complex, and the lesion location and pathology are mainly atrophy of the cochlear cochlea's organs, decreased basement membrane elasticity, atrophy of cochlear neurons, and atrophy of intracochlear vascular striae.

It is generally believed that presbycusis is irreversible, but it can delay its occurrence or development by paying attention to health care and health care.

Senile hearing loss refers to all types of hearing loss that occur as the auditory system ages as the human body ages. Just like machine parts, aging occurs when used to a certain extent.

In fact, in addition to age factors, many factors such as genetics, drugs, noise, otitis media, and some systemic chronic diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and poor liver and kidney function are the main causes of hearing loss in the elderly.

Hearing loss in the elderly is largely due to the deterioration of the auditory organs, but it is not the only factor, and many causes can accelerate hearing loss in the elderly.

1.Cerumen embolism, when we usually chew and speak, causes vibrations in the external auditory canal, and cerumen is expelled.

However, the elderly will easily cause cerumen blockage and cause hearing loss due to increased cerumen gland secretion in the cartilage region, muscle relaxation, easy collapse of the external auditory canal, and easy hair growth in the ear canal. After cerumen is removed, hearing will improve significantly, but if the blockage is too long, secondary infections will occur.

2.Ototoxic drugs.

Ototoxic drugs include aminoglycosides, salicylic acids, antineoplastic drugs, etc. Aminoglycosides, in particular, are irreversible in their toxicity to the ear. The pathogenic mechanism is:

The hair cells of the inner ear actively take up the drug, and the drug binds to the ribosomal RNA of the hair cell, causing mRNA mistranslation and generating toxic superoxide radicals, leading to hair cell necrosis3.

3.Diseases that affect the blood in the inner ear**.

Studies have shown that heart disease (and risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure) increase the risk of hearing loss. Impaired cardiovascular effects have a negative impact on both the peripheral and central auditory systems, especially in older people. Good blood circulation plays an important role in keeping your hearing healthy.

Conversely, insufficient blood flow and damage to blood vessels in the inner ear can lead to hearing loss. This is because the delicate hair cells in the cochlea depend on good blood circulation, which in turn convert the acoustic signals collected by the ear into electrical signals that are transmitted to the auditory nerve. Poor circulation causes these hair cells to lack adequate oxygen, causing damage or destruction, and hair cells are unable to regenerate, which can lead to permanent hearing loss.

4.Bad habits such as smoking and drinking.

Alcohol and nicotine can directly damage the auditory nerve, and long-term excessive alcohol consumption is a common risk factor for hypertension and cardiovascular disease in the elderly.

Most of the elderly are older, functional deterioration, or gradual hearing loss caused by working long hours under noise when they were young, and neurological hearing loss caused by sudden tinnitus caused by poor sleep.

One is hearing loss caused by the elderly, the second is hearing loss caused by their own age, and the third is hearing loss caused by work when you are young (caused by too much noise when you are young at work).

According to Youran Territory, there are two main causes of hearing loss in the elderly:

1) It is related to external factors, including environmental noise, taking ototoxic drugs, or other diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, etc., and 2) with age, aging causes degeneration of inner hair cells and central auditory nerves.

Many factors can affect your hearing and cause hearing loss, including: 1. Long-term exposure to noise; 2. Genetic diseases; 3. Ototoxic drugs; 4. Trauma; 5. Ear canal embolism; 6. Aging.

The common hearing loss in the elderly is called senile hearing loss, with the increase of age, the organs begin to degenerate, and the degeneration of auditory organs is a common manifestation, so some people often say that when you are old, you can't hear when you're old, and you can't hear when you're old. There is also noise exposure, and the elderly of today's may have been involved in factories more when they were younger, and long-term noise exposure led to hearing loss. No matter what kind of hearing loss, one of the most obvious characteristics of hearing loss in the elderly is that it must be very difficult to communicate with family members before they think of intervention, and at this time, hearing loss is often at least 3 years or more, which is generally sensorineural hearing loss.

What is the impact of hearing loss on the lives of the elderly? 1. Lack of communication and loneliness Due to hearing loss, when listening to the radio and watching TV, the noise makes the neighbors uneasy and the family members are troubled; It's inconvenient to go out shopping; It is difficult to communicate with older people of the same age outside because of hearing loss; Psychology is more prone to loneliness. 2. Suspicious and irritable, stubborn personality Because it is often difficult to hear what others are saying, and the patient himself does not realize that it is caused by hearing, he will think that others are talking bad about himself behind his back, which will produce suspicious, irritable, withdrawn, anxious, depressed and other emotions, stubborn opinions, and refuse to listen to others' advice.

3. Hearing loss causes acquired "speech impairment" The elderly have serious high-frequency loss of hearing loss, decreased auditory language comprehension, can hear others but cannot understand semantics, difficulties in social communication, coupled with reduced lung capacity, and reluctance to speak more, which will further affect the physical and mental health of the elderly. 4. Slow response and nervous decline need to be prevented Senile hearing loss reduces the amount of sound information received, and the discarded hearing function reduces all kinds of information from the outside world. Studies have shown that:

Senile hearing loss is positively correlated with cerebral atrophy and senile dementia, and with hearing loss and hearing function disuse, neuroatrophy and Alzheimer's disease may be accelerated.

If the hearing loss of the elderly is of course affected by the lives of the elderly, and the lives of the elderly must be inconvenient, because they cannot be heard, so it will directly affect the lives of the elderly.

Presbycusis, high-frequency hearing loss is particularly pronounced, and speech comprehension is reduced, especially in noisy environments. There is often a phenomenon of auditory rejuvenation, that is, "small voices cannot be heard, loud noises are felt", often accompanied by high-pitched tinnitus, and tinnitus symptoms usually precede deafness. Attention should be paid to it.

1. Prevention. 1. Pay attention to diet moderation, reduce the intake of lipid foods, quit smoking and alcohol, lower blood lipids, and actively prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases;

2. Avoid contact with noise and avoid the application of ototoxic drugs;

3. Pay attention to the combination of work and rest to maintain a comfortable mood;

4. Engage in appropriate physical activity;

5. Improve blood circulation in the brain and inner ear.

Two**. Presbycusis is an irreversible degenerative lesion of the auditory system, and there is currently no effective **. Vitamins, trace elements, and vasodilators have no definite effect on the disease.

It is recommended to wear appropriate hearing aids as soon as possible to help the elderly improve their communication skills and improve their quality of life. Care should be taken to avoid shouting loudly when talking to the patient, and to speak as slowly and clearly as possible.

Three**. Patients with hearing loss often face the process of adapting to hearing aids and learning to "hear" again when using hearing aids. In this process, family members should be considerate and always give support and encouragement.

1. After wearing hearing aids, there is no need to raise the volume to talk to the hearing loss, so as not to cause hearing discomfort and hearing difficulties in loud voices. At the same time, do not deliberately use a very small sound to test the effect of hearing aids, so as to avoid causing a lack of confidence during the adaptation period. Just talk at a normal volume.

2. The tone of speech should be kept natural, the speed of speech should be slightly slower, and the pronunciation should be clear. Trying to talk face-to-face as much as possible, using eyes, expressions, and movements to help understand the conversation will help you learn and adapt better.

3. The user of the hearing aid needs to re-learn to "concentrate" for a while, at this stage, it is necessary to get his attention before talking, and make sure that he is listening before starting to speak.

4. Even for normal people, it is difficult to find the sound to listen to in a noisy environment. If possible, try to avoid overly loud ambient noise distractions to better understand what is being said.

5. If you find that the other party heard it wrong, or still can't hear it clearly, don't use the same word repeatedly, it's best to change the word or say it again, it will be easier to understand.

The attitudes of family and friends are largely related to the effectiveness of hearing aids. The support and encouragement of family and friends is necessary to overcome hearing impairment and regain the joy of life.

Although hearing loss in the elderly is universal, the main reason is the deterioration of auditory pathways, but other chronic ear diseases will also cause hearing loss in the elderly, bad lifestyle habits, and three high diseases are also high risk factors for senile hearing loss. If you want to slow down presbycusis, you must take preventive measures, such as reducing noise exposure, quitting smoking and drinking, rational use of ototoxic drugs, and timely intervention if hearing loss exists, including wearing hearing aids, training and other measures to prevent further hearing disability.

Reduce noise exposure, quit smoking and drinking, control the three highs, and intervene in time if there is hearing loss, including wearing hearing aids, training and other measures.

Hope it can help you, hope

First, the diet needs to be light and eat more high-protein and high-fiber foods.

Second, work and rest in life should be regular and exercise appropriately. Maintain the body's resistance, immunity.

Third, stay calm emotionally and don't get excited. A normal heart often brings us a different course of events. Don't let yourself be in a state of impatience.

Fourth, pay attention to medication and refuse to take drugs that are harmful to the body. Discuss with your doctor before taking medication.

Fifth, don't let yourself be in a noisy or noisy environment.

The elderly, in particular, must maintain a normal heart and slow down the pace of life. Don't be in a hurry. in order to benefit their own body.

What should be paid attention to in order to protect hearing loss in daily life? 1.Maintain a good emotional state Emotions are the hidden "killer" of ear health, when people are highly excited or anxious, people's adrenaline secretion will increase, which will cause spasm of the arteriole blood vessels in the inner ear, slow blood flow in the small blood vessels, low blood flow, insufficient blood supply and oxygen supply to the inner ear, and even lead.

1.If the elderly find that there is hearing loss in their daily life, they must go to the hospital as soon as possible for a comprehensive examination, only early detection and then targeting, can effectively prevent deafness, which is also an effective way for the elderly to prevent deafness, we should learn from it.

For the elderly hearing loss survey, do not go to noisy or large places for prevention, and often check the ear canal and cochlea to prevent hearing loss.

In the case of hearing loss in the elderly, it is generally necessary to prevent it according to some of his related conditions, and to pay attention to exercise.

At the same time, noise is also an important cause of senile hearing loss, if the elderly are in a noisy environment for a long time, it is easy to cause ear discomfort, tinnitus, earache, hearing damage and other hearing problems. Suggestion: Try to avoid noise.

Hearing loss in the elderly. How to prevent hearing loss in the elderly, there is really no way to prevent it, because it is normal for the elderly to have ear diseases. Tinnitus and deafness are normal.

The way to prevent hearing loss in the elderly is to go to places where the sound is very loud.

How to prevent hearing loss in the elderly? I think that in this case, you should be careful to go to that noisy place.

In fact, although hearing loss in the elderly is common, the main reason is the deterioration of auditory pathways, but other chronic ear diseases will also cause hearing loss and bad habits in the elderly.

How to prevent hearing loss in the elderly, the best way to prevent it is you, you have to have a particularly good listener to you, so that you can have a healthy life to enter.

This kind of thing is very serious, and you must go to a regular tertiary hospital for consultation. Based on the results of the examination, listen to the advice of a medical professional.

It is better to check with a hospital with specialized medical equipment as soon as possible.

1. Develop good eating habits, the elderly should pay special attention to nutrition, supplement zinc, iron, calcium and other trace elements, especially zinc, these trace elements have a significant effect on the prevention of presbycusis, zinc-rich foods mainly include marine fish, fresh shellfish, regular consumption is very good for the prevention of presbycusis, you can also choose to take some, rich in vitamins and trace elements of health products.

2. It is to maintain emotional stability, the blood vessel elasticity of the elderly is poor, and emotional agitation can easily lead to intra-ear vasospasm, if accompanied by high blood viscosity, it will aggravate the hypoxia and ischemia of the inner ear, and eventually lead to hearing loss.