If Hearing Loss is Not Treated, Brain Can 'Forget' How to Hear and Understand Speech

Effects of Auditory Deprivation May be Permanent, Says Hearing Care Expert


WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Oct. 19  /PRNewswire/ -- Most of the 28 million Americans living with untreated hearing loss may not be aware that failure to take corrective action could result in the brain actually "forgetting" how to hear and understand speech, warns HearUSA audiologist Cindy Beyer.

Dr. Beyer is senior vice president of HearUSA (AMEX:EAR), one of America's leading hearing care and hearing aids companies.

"When the brain is insufficiently stimulated by sound over a period of time, it can lose a portion of its ability to process information," said Dr. Beyer. "This condition is called auditory deprivation and studies indicate that the longer a patient goes without treatment the more likely it is that the brain will forget how to process speech, even after treatment is implemented."

"These findings strongly suggest that delaying treatment for hearing loss for years, as so many do, can risk permanently impairing the brain's ability to understand speech," said Dr. Beyer.

  She offered these facts about hearing loss:
  --  Thirty-six million Americans experience hearing loss. (American
      Academy of Audiology)
  --  While the vast majority of Americans (95%) with hearing loss could be
      successfully treated with hearing aids, only one in five currently use
      them. (University of California, San Francisco Department of
      Neurological Surgery)
  --  People with hearing loss wait an average of seven years before seeking
      help. (Center for Hearing and Communication)
  --  Those who have difficulty hearing can experience such distorted and
      incomplete communication that it seriously impacts their professional
      and personal lives, at times leading to isolation and withdrawal.
      (Better Hearing Institute)

  --  Nine out of ten hearing aid users report improvements in their quality
      of life. (Better Hearing Institute)



What are the indications of hearing loss?  Dr. Beyer says any one of these can be a symptom:

  --  You feel that people mumble and don't speak clearly
  --  You understand some people better than others
  --  You have difficulty understanding phone conversations
  --  Family and friends comment on the need to repeat themselves
  --  You have difficulty following a conversation in a crowded room
  --  People complain that you turn up the volume on the television to an
      uncomfortable level

  --  You have ringing in your ears



Noting that, in most cases, the progression of hearing loss is subtle, becoming greater and greater over time, Dr. Beyer recommends yearly hearing examinations and urges those diagnosed with hearing loss to promptly seek treatment and avoid the risk and consequences of auditory deprivation.

For more on hearing health, quality of life and technology, visit http://www.hearusa.com/.

About HearUSA

HearUSA, the only hearing care provider awarded Health Network Accreditation from URAC, the accrediting organization that establishes quality standards for the nation's health care industry, provides hearing care through the HearUSA Hearing Care Network of 1,900 affiliated audiologists in 49 states and in more than 190 company-owned hearing care centers, all of which offer a large selection of state-of-the-art digital hearing aids. 

DATASOURCE: HearUSA



CONTACT:  Sanford Teller Communications, [phone],

; Dr. Cindy Beyer, Senior Vice President,

[phone] (ext. 113), 



Web Site:  http://www.hearusa.com/ 

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