Deafness: Types Causes Treatment
Let’s start with one of the greatest impairments that people of mostly old age face Deafness: Types Causes Treatment.
DEAFNESS
Deafness is unpaired hearing and it is a great social handicap.
Types of deafness-
1. Conductive deafness
It is caused by a defect in the conducting mechanism of the ear namely the external and the middle ear. Any defect in the external auditory canal, eardrum, ossicular chain, and tympanic cavity up to the oval window results in conductive deafness.
Causes
External ear –
- Wax
- Fungus
- Otitis externa
- Polyps
- Meningitis
- Stenosis,
- Foreign bodies
- Atresia
Middle ear –
- congenital
- Traumatic
- Otitis media
- Neoplasm
- Miscellaneous
Eustachian Tube – Deafness: Types Causes Treatment
- Barotrauma
- Eustachian catarrh
- Eustachian dysfunction
Treatment– The majority of cases can be treated. A hearing aid is advised for those who are unfit for surgery.
2. Sensorineural deafness-
It is caused by lesions in the labyrinth, eight nerves, and central connections. It includes psychogenic deafness.
Causes-
- Congenital
- Infection like mumps
- Tumors’
- Meniere disease
- Ototoxic drugs like Streptomycin and Neomycin
- Presbycusis and diseases like diabetes, hypothyroidism, CVD, and CNS disorders.
Treatment –
- Sudden deafness – Almost half of the patients have sudden SN deafness, which improves in 2-4 weeks. As time pass, recovery becomes less likely:
- Steroids
- Vasodilation
- Vitamin B1
- B6, B12, A, C, E.
- Carbogen
- Tranquilizers
- Antidepressant
3. Psychogenic Deafness- Deafness: Types Causes Treatment
It is of 2 types-
- Functional- The cause of deafness is emotional, but the patient is not aware of the cause.
- Malingering- The patient is aware that he is pretending to be deaf for personal gain. There is neither a psychological nor an organic cause.
- Mixed Deafness- If conductive as well as sensorineural deafness are present it is called mixed deafness.
Causes- Trauma, chronic supportive otitis media with labyrinths, penile deafness.
Investigations-
- Test of hearing – Voice test, Watch test, TF test.
- Blood sugar
- VDRL
- Check for BP
- Neurological Examination
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