Inner West Hearing Clinic

Types of Hearing Loss

Hearing loss can be described in three ways; either a sensori-neural hearing loss, conductive hearing loss, or a mixed hearing loss which is a combination of both a sensori-neural and a conductive loss.

Sensori-Neural Hearing loss
A sensori-neural hearing loss occurs when there is a permanent change in how the cochlea (the organ of hearing) is functioning. This change in hearing is generally caused by the natural “wear and tear” of the cochlea over time or noise exposure. There are other causes however these are the more common. There is no medical treatment to correct this type of loss; once the hearing is gone, it’s gone. The recommended methods to assist with a permanent change in hearing are various forms of rehabilitation such as the use of hearing aids, listening devices or listening tactics.

Sensori-Neural Hearing loss

A sensori-neural hearing loss occurs when there is a permanent change in how the cochlea (the organ of hearing) is functioning. This change in hearing is generally caused by the natural “wear and tear” of the cochlea over time or noise exposure. There are other causes however these are the more common. There is no medical treatment to correct this type of loss; once the hearing is gone, it’s gone. The recommended methods to assist with a permanent change in hearing are various forms of rehabilitation such as the use of hearing aids, listening devices or listening tactics.

Conductive Hearing Loss
A conductive hearing loss occurs when there is an obstruction in the way sound travels from the outside of our ear, down the ear canal, in to the middle ear cavity (where the tiny little bones of the ear are) and on to the organ of hearing. The obstruction can occur either in the ear canal or in the middle ear. It is more often only a temporary change in hearing which either corrects itself naturally or can be treated medically. For example, an excessive build-up of wax in the ear canal can completely obstruct the canal and thus temporarily effect how the sound travels to the cochlea (organ of hearing). In some cases however, medical treatment may not be appropriate and in these instances alternative forms of assistance such as the use of hearing aids may be recommended.

Conductive Hearing Loss

A conductive hearing loss occurs when there is an obstruction in the way sound travels from the outside of our ear, down the ear canal, in to the middle ear cavity (where the tiny little bones of the ear are) and on to the organ of hearing. The obstruction can occur either in the ear canal or in the middle ear. It is more often only a temporary change in hearing which either corrects itself naturally or can be treated medically. For example, an excessive build-up of wax in the ear canal can completely obstruct the canal and thus temporarily effect how the sound travels to the cochlea (organ of hearing). In some cases however, medical treatment may not be appropriate and in these instances alternative forms of assistance such as the use of hearing aids may be recommended.