About Single Sided Deafness
What is single sided deafness?
Single sided deafness is an isolating condition that can make life's simple tasks – crossing a road, social gatherings, business meetings – very difficult. The term single sided deafness refers to a condition where there is significant or total hearing loss in one ear, while the good ear has hearing within normal limits.
Anyone can suffer from single sided deafness. Some people are born with it, while others can become deaf in one ear due to disease, trauma, or the environment. You are not alone. Today, by some estimates there are over nine million Americans suffering from single sided deafness.
Are there other names for single sided deafness?
There are many terms used to describe the condition where you are essentially deaf in one ear. You may have heard terms such as sudden hearing loss, sudden deafness, or a term often used by doctors, unilateral sensorineural hearing loss. Regardless of the name, all refer to a condition which can greatly affect day to day life and cause you to withdraw from family and friends.
What's wrong?
To hear well, you rely on three critical parts of your ear's anatomy: the outer ear, middle ear, and inner ear (known as the cochlea). While some types of hearing loss can be due to problems with the outer or middle ear, single sided deafness is caused by a problem in the inner-ear or cochlea. This is known as sensorineural hearing loss.
What are the causes of single sided deafness?
Being deaf in one ear can be caused by a wide range of conditions. Sometimes the underlying cause is unknown. Conditions that can cause single sided deafness include:
- Sudden or rapid deafness of unknown cause
- Physical damage to the ear from trauma/head injury
- Diseases such as measles, mumps, meningitis
- Severe Meniere's Disease
- Tumors in the ear or brain; acoustic neuromas
- Birth defects
How does single sided deafness change everyday life?
While the symptoms of single sided deafness may vary from person to person, you may find that the simplest things in life have become quite challenging. You may have experienced difficulty understanding the direction a sound is coming from or understanding speech in a noisy environment. Driving a car, going to restaurants, socializing with family and friends, or jogging can become overwhelming, leading you to withdraw from social and professional activities you once enjoyed. For many, being deaf in one ear can be life-changing.
Can single sided deafness be treated?
While there is no cure for permanent single sided deafness, treatments are available to restore the sensation of hearing in your deaf ear. Until now, you may have felt that the treatment choices were limited. You may have had concerns about the quality of sound or the visibility of the treatment solution. You may have considered a surgical implant.
SoundBite™ Hearing System is the world's first non-surgical and removable hearing solution to use the well-established principle of bone conduction to imperceptibly transmit sound via the teeth. It is intended to help patients who suffer from single sided deafness rejoin the conversation of life.
If you suffer from single sided deafness, SoundBite Hearing System may be the ideal choice for you. To learn more about SoundBite Hearing System visit Who Can Use SoundBite? or let us help you find a doctor in your area.
