At Stanford Health Care, we provide world-class sensorineural hearing loss treatment. Our multispecialty team helps you reconnect with your surroundings—and your loved ones—as much as possible.
You can rely on our highly skilled providers for comprehensive hearing loss care and advanced treatment options.
What is sensorineural hearing loss?
Sensorineural hearing loss happens when there is a break in the connection between your ear and brain. In your inner ear, the cochlea (sensory organ of hearing) changes sound vibrations into electrical signals. Then your auditory nerve sends these signals to the brain. Damage to the cochlea or auditory nerve pathways leads to hearing loss.
Sensorineural hearing loss is different than conductive hearing loss, which is caused by damage to your outer or middle ear. However, you may have mixed hearing loss, meaning you have a combination of sensorineural and conductive hearing loss.
What causes sensorineural hearing loss?
Sensorineural hearing loss can have many causes, including:
- Aging (presbycusis)
- Genetic or inherited hearing loss
- Head or ear injuries and trauma
- Exposure to loud noise
- Medications that harm structures in the ear (ototoxic medications)
- Viral infections, (such as meningitis, measles, or herpes zoster oticus)
Certain conditions can also lead to sensorineural hearing loss, such as:
- Acoustic neuroma (a noncancerous tumor on the nerve pathways from the ear to the brain)
- Autoimmune disease
- Deformity of the inner ear since birth
- Ménière's disease (an inner ear disease affecting hearing and balance)
- Ostosclerosis (an inner ear disease causing abnormal bone turnover)
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Is sensorineural hearing loss permanent?
Sensorineural hearing loss is typically permanent. However, many treatment options exist to enhance your hearing or replace the parts of your ear that don't work. Not all causes of sensorineural hearing loss are reversible, but researchers at Stanford Health Care are actively pursuing new therapies.
Understanding Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural Hearing Loss Symptoms
Hearing loss usually develops gradually. You may not even realize you have hearing loss or inner ear damage until you or your doctor notice the signs. Signs of hearing loss include:
Types of Sensorineural Hearing Loss
You may have mild, moderate, severe, or profound (total or almost total) sensorineural hearing loss. Hearing loss and inner ear damage may occur in one or both ears.
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (sudden deafness) develops quickly, over the course of three days or less. You should see a medical provider immediately if you experience sudden sensorineural hearing loss.
Preventing Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss may develop for reasons out of your control. However, you can prevent inner ear damage from certain causes. Be sure to:
- Ask your doctor if alternatives exist for medications known to be ototoxic (harmful to the ears).
- Treat viral infections as soon as possible.
- Reduce your exposure to loud noises, such as noise from music, lawn mowers, or power tools.
- Wear ear protection around loud sounds when possible.
Your doctor will do an ear exam and ask about your symptoms and past health conditions. Our specialists may find that you have hearing loss during a routine visit. Or, you may come in to the office after noticing symptoms.
Ear exam
Your doctor uses a microscope to look inside your ear. Through this microscope, your doctor can look closely at your ear canal, eardrum, and middle ear.
Hearing tests
We use hearing tests to find out how much hearing loss you have. You may see an otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat doctor) or an audiologist (hearing specialist) for these tests.
Hearing tests check your:
- Ability to hear tones of different pitch and loudness
- Ability to hear words spoken at different volumes
- Automatic response to loud sounds (acoustic reflex)
- Response in your brain to sounds
Tympanometry
Your doctor may use a tympanometry test to look at how well your eardrum and middle ear work. This test changes the pressure inside your ear with bursts of air. Meanwhile, your doctor looks at how your eardrum and middle ear respond.
Imaging
Sometimes we need more information about the structures in and around your ear. Your doctor may request high-definition images from a computed tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.
Balance Evaluation
The inner ear includes your vestibular system, which allows you to balance and stabilize your body. Some causes of sensorineural hearing loss may also harm your vestibular system. We offer comprehensive balance evaluations at the Stanford Health Care Balance Center.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss happens when inner ear damage keeps sound signals from reaching the brain. Our specialists restore as much hearing as possible.
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