Even if you don’t have symptoms of hearing loss or suspect that you have any issues with your hearing, it’s prudent to get your hearing tested every few years, especially as you age. Detecting hearing loss early makes treatment easier and more effective.
The Effects of Untreated Hearing Loss
Our bodies are complex networks; no health condition is isolated. Hearing loss has been correlated to a variety of other health conditions, such as:
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Increased rates of depression and anxiety
- Cognitive decline
- Cardiovascular issues
- Increased stroke risk
- Balance issues
- Increased fall risk
- Social isolation
- Decreased independence
If left untreated, hearing loss’s effects on these other conditions will be even greater.
How Hearing Loss Progresses
Hearing loss is fairly common; however, less than one in every three adults who could benefit from hearing aids have ever used them. For many of those people, it’s quite likely that they haven’t even noticed they have a hearing challenge.
Hearing loss—especially age-related hearing loss, which is the most common cause of hearing loss—progresses very gradually, as the tiny sensory cells in the cochlea age and die off. This means you lose your hearing incrementally, often without even realizing the difference.
Getting Your Hearing Tested
All of this is why we recommend getting your hearing tested, even if you don’t notice any symptoms. Even if the results come back in the normal hearing range, this is still valuable information because it sets up your hearing “baseline” that you and your audiologist can then refer to in the coming years when monitoring for changes.
If it’s been a while since your last hearing test, or if you’ve never had one at all, call Charleston ENT & Allergy to set up an appointment.