There are different types of senile deafness! How much do you know about senile deafness?

Senile deafness is a manifestation of the aging process of the human body in the auditory organs. With the aging of the population, senile deafness will affect the quality of life of more and more people.

Do you really understand senile deafness?

What are the types of senile deafness?

The pathological changes of senile deafness are relatively complicated and the scope is wide, but the main lesions of each individual are generally limited to 1-2.

According to Schuknecht and Welsh’s classification of senile deafness, according to its pathological changes, it can be divided into the following 5 types.

1.Sensorineural deafness

This type of deafness is characterized by atrophy and disappearance of inner and outer hair cells and the associated nerve fibers.

The lesion starts at the end of the bottom week and gradually develops toward the top week. The outer hair cells are generally damaged first and then the inner hair cells are involved. Pure tone audiograms are characterized by steep high-frequency drops, and early low-frequency hearing is normal.

Through a large number of pathological anatomy, it has been found that from childhood, hair cells have atrophied, and with age, it gradually develops and aggravates.

There are also studies that support cells may be the earliest cells that have undergone degeneration;

2.Neurogenic senile deafness

This type of deafness is mainly characterized by the degeneration of the cochlear spiral ganglia and nerve fibers.

Presented as ganglion cells of different sizes, nuclear shrinkage, shift, cell number reduction, with nerve fiber degeneration, the number decreased. The lesions were heavier at the bottom and top.

The clinical manifestations are that on the basis of the increase in all frequencies of the pure tone hearing threshold, high frequency hearing is usually severely damaged, the speech recognition ability is significantly reduced, and the degree of change in the pure tone hearing threshold is inconsistent;

In addition, neurogenic deafness can occur at any age, but hearing loss occurs only when the number of nerve cells has fallen to a certain level.

3.Vascular senile deafness

This type is also called metabolic senile deafness and is characterized by atrophy of cochlear vascular striae.

The blood vessels generate energy under physiological conditions, which can regulate the concentration of electric ions in the endolymph and maintain normal intrasnail potentials, thereby ensuring the normal physiological function of the cochlea.

Vascular senile deafness often spreads to the entire blood vessel pattern from the top to the bottom, so the patient’s hearing curve is mostly flat, and speech discrimination is normal.

4.Cochlear conductive senile deafness

This is a mechanical or cochlear conductive deafness characterized by a decrease in basement membrane elasticity.

There are no obvious lesions in the cochlea and auditory nerve of this type of deafness, but the basement membrane becomes stiff due to thickening, hyalinization, and reduction of elastic fibers, especially at the narrowest part of the basement membrane at the end of the periphery.

Pure-tone audiograms are slow-down audiograms with high-frequency hearing loss.

5.Central senile deafness

It is mainly the central nervous system at all levels of hearing, especially the neurons in the auditory region of the cerebral cortex showing degenerative changes. This is also the main reason for the obstacles of speech communication among the elderly.

How to delay hearing aging?

There is currently no effective way to reverse hearing loss caused by aging.

However, some studies have found that age is not the only factor determining the development of the disease. Not all elderly people’s hearing loss is biological aging. The hearing loss caused by age alone is not very serious. Mental factors and some senile diseases, etc.) will accelerate the occurrence and development of senile deafness.

Therefore, this hearing degradation process varies in speed and there are obvious individual differences.

If you can prevent it in your daily life, you can greatly delay the hearing aging process.

1.Develop good eating habits

The elderly should pay special attention to nutrition, and supplement more trace elements such as zinc, iron, and calcium, especially zinc. These trace elements have a significant effect on the prevention of senile deafness.

According to a survey in the United States, people with senile deafness have been continuously supplemented with zinc for more than half a year, and one third of them have improved their symptoms to varying degrees.

Foods rich in zinc are mainly sea fish and fresh shellfish. Regular consumption is good for preventing senile deafness.

2.Keep a calm mind and a stable mood

The vascular elasticity of the elderly is poor, and emotional excitement can easily cause vasospasm in the ear. Especially the elderly have high blood viscosity, which will aggravate ischemia and hypoxia in the inner ear and cause hearing loss.

It is recommended to use some preparations with effects such as promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis to improve microcirculation.

3.Avoid staying in noisy places

Under the stimulation of noise, the auditory organs and cerebral blood vessels are in a state of excitement and spasm. In the long run, the blood supply to the brain of the auditory organ is insufficient, and the hearing cells are atrophic, resulting in a gradual decline in hearing.

Studies have found that people who work and live in a noisy environment for a long time have a higher incidence of senile deafness.

Therefore, the elderly should try to avoid long-term noise stimulation. When encountering sudden noise, they should stay away as soon as possible to reduce the impact and harm of noise on both ears.

4.Quit smoking and drinking

Smoking and drinking not only directly damage the auditory nerve, but also lead to the occurrence of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, resulting in insufficient blood supply to the inner ear and affecting hearing.

5.Strengthen physical exercise

Physical activity promotes blood circulation throughout the body, and blood supply to the inner ear improves. Exercise programs can be selected according to specific physical conditions, such as walking, jogging, etc., but it must be adhered to.

What should I do if I have deafness?

For people who have already suffered from deafness in the elderly, how can they prevent further development of the disease?

Elderly people must seek medical treatment in time when hearing loss is found, and doctors will provide reasonable advice and treatment methods according to the condition. Drugs that improve microcirculation and nutritional nervous system are generally used.

These medications may not improve until you take them regularly for 2-3 months, but they do not necessarily improve. After all, hearing degradation is an irreversible process.

Wearing hearing aids is one of the most effective means of intervention for senile deafness, and it is also the main way to improve the auditory communication impairment of senile deafness. However, it should be noted that very serious people will not achieve good results with hearing aids.

Therefore, we must detect and intervene early.