Hearing Loss

Hearing loss that occurs gradually as one ages, presbycusis, is normal. More than half of United States adults age 65 and older have some degree of hearing loss. In addition to aging, there are several other factors that may contribute to hearing loss. Other factors include genetics, ototoxic medications, head trauma, illnesses and noise exposure.

Today, hearing loss affects approximately 37.5 million American people 18 and older.

Signs and symptoms of hearing loss may gradually evolve and become more noticeable:

• Speech is muffled. It may seem as though people mumble.
• Difficulty understanding children and women’s voices.
• Needing to turn up the volume of the television and/or radio.
• Difficulty understanding telephone conversations and when one cannot see the speaker’s mouth.
• Needing to ask others to repeat themselves.
• Difficult to understand conversations, especially when in a group or a background of noise.
• Withdrawal from conversations.
• Avoidance of social situations because of difficulty communicating.

Tinnitus

Tinnitus, a noise(s) heard without an external source, may be described in numerous ways. To some, tinnitus may be explained as a ringing sound, a buzzing, hissing, steady tone or even as “crickets” or “cicadas”. Tinnitus may present in just one ear, both ears, and in a person’s head.

Tinnitus affects nearly 15% of American adults. There are more than 2.3 million Veterans who receive compensation for tinnitus. Over 1.3 million Veterans receive compensation for hearing loss. Combined, tinnitus and hearing loss represent the top two service-connected disabilities among our Veterans.