Health
Differences between Mild and Moderate Hearing Loss
by John Gary
Hearing loss is a condition that many people face, especially as the years go by. Hearing can begin to decline as you age and you may find that you need assistance to repair the damage in your ear. The loss of your hearing can be a devastating blow and make it hard for you to work or converse with friends and family. Thankfully there are ways to repair damage or products that can be used to allow you to hear better than ever before. There are several types of hearing loss and below we will cover mild to moderate hearing loss conditions.
Definition of Hearing Loss
The actual definition of hearing loss will vary from person to person. The degree of hearing loss is divided into different sub-categories so the physician can help you better understand the amount of hearing loss taking place. Mild and moderate hearing loss are the lesser of the condition while severe to profound hearing loss are the more delicate, and can cause you to lose hearing all together.
Mild Hearing Loss
With the average person, quiet sounds register at 25 to 40 dB. When someone is suffering from Mild hearing loss, they will have trouble reaching these numbers. The individual may have trouble hearing conversations or keeping up with talking to others when there is noise such as a crowded restaurant or entertainment venue. This is the lowest form of hearing loss and can be helped with a hearing device.
Moderate Hearing Loss
When you have good hearing, you are able to hear sounds from 40 to 70 dB. When you have Moderate hearing loss, you are not able to do this without the assistance of a hearing aid. This level of hearing loss is quite significant and does require assistance to be able to hear regular conversations. When you have moderate hearing loss, you will be able to tell that you have the condition as you will constantly be asking others to repeat themselves or have to move closer to the individual to be able to hear the conservation.
Hearing Aid Assistance
With mild hearing loss, you will not necessarily need the assistance of a hearing aid. You are able to hear conversations, only having trouble when the noise level is loud. With moderate hearing loss, you will need the assistance of a hearing aid so you can hear every aspect of the conversation. A physician will be able to help you determine which category you fit into and what will help you to be able to hear better.
Understanding Speech or Reading Lips
With mild hearing loss, you will not be able to hear soft noises. You will only have trouble distinguishing speech when in an environment that is loud. You can learn to read lips for assistance but it is not a necessity. With moderate hearing loss, reading lips can be essential as you will have major difficulty understanding speech patterns in a normal to noisy environment. With mild loss, you only have trouble when loud noises are present and with Moderate, you can have issues for the majority of the time you try to listen to people speaking. You may find you are turning up the television or radio to be able to hear it better than before when you could hear the entertainment at normal levels.
At a hearing center, you will be able to have an evaluation of your hearing to determine if you meet the mild or moderate hearing loss criteria. If you do, the physician will be able to help you find a treatment, such as a hearing aid. If you are having issues, by having your hearing accessed, you will be able to finally know why you have difficulty in conversations and get the help you need to hear better.
