On March 3, the world celebrates World Hearing Day, and this year it will focus on the challenges posed by societal misconceptions and stigmatizing attitudes by addressing the lack of awareness and accurate information among the general population and health care providers, according to the World Health Organization.
The organization said that globally, more than 80% of ear and hearing care needs remain unmet. Untreated hearing loss costs the world about one trillion dollars annually.
The organization added - in a statement on its website - that societal misconceptions and entrenched stigmatizing attitudes constitute major factors that limit efforts to prevent and treat hearing loss. Changing attitudes about ear and hearing care is essential to improve access to care and reduce the cost of untreated hearing loss.
World Hearing Day 2024 seeks to achieve the following communication goals:
Draw attention among communities and health care providers to common misconceptions and attitudes about ear and hearing problems.
Providing accurate, evidence-based information to change public perceptions about ear and hearing problems.
Call on countries and civil society to address misconceptions and stigmatizing attitudes about hearing loss, as a critical step towards ensuring equitable access to ear and hearing care.
The organization concluded its statement by saying, “Let’s make ear and hearing care available to everyone!”
Hearing problems
Hearing problems , in terms of origin, are divided into three categories: some are related to conduction, some are related to sensory hearing, and some are combined between the two and are called mixed hearing loss.
Conduction-related hearing problems
They are hearing difficulties resulting from problems in the parts that transmit sound from the ear, which are the outer ear: the pinna, the auditory canal, and the tympanum, and the middle ear: the three ossicles, which are the stapes, the malleus, and the anvil. Usually, this type of hearing difficulties can be dealt with through surgery or the use of hearing aids. The aid is like a stethoscope.
Among its reasons:
-Inflammation of the middle ear .
-Otitis externa ( swimmer's ear ).
-Eardrum perforation.
-Wax accumulation in the ear.
-The presence of fluid in the middle ear.
Allergies .
-The presence of a foreign body, such as a small piece of plastic that a child pushed into his ear.
-The presence of congenital problems in the anatomy of the ear.
Sensory hearing problems
They are hearing difficulties that occur as a result of problems in the inner ear: the cochlea, or the nerve or nerve pathway that transmits auditory messages to the brain. Often this type of hearing problem cannot be corrected using surgery or hearing aids. It is the most common type of hearing problem that causes permanent hearing loss.
The causes of this type of hearing loss include:
-Some diseases, such as meningitis .
-Aging , as changes occur in the inner ear or nerves.
-Exposure to loud sounds and noise.
-Hearing loss that exists in certain families, that is, it is hereditary.
-Taking some medications.
-Suffering from a head injury .
-The presence of congenital or anatomical problems in the inner ear.
Mixed hearing loss
In which hearing loss is caused by problems in the conduction system: the outer and middle ear, and the sensory system: the inner ear and the auditory nerve.
Symptoms of hearing problems
Difficulty understanding words, especially if the person is in a place with other sounds, such as other people talking or street noise.
Having to turn up the volume on the TV or tape recorder to hear what is being said.
The person feels that the sounds he hears are faint or low.
Withdrawing from the conversation, as the affected person is unable to hear what is being said.
Asking the speaker to repeat the speech or raise the voice.