Hearing Loss Archive

New regulations allow Americans to buy hearing aids over the counter, without requiring a hearing test. These devices will cost less and can only treat mild to moderate hearing loss––will they be right for you?

An estimated 30 million Americans experience some level of hearing loss, but only about 20% of them seek hearing aids. Many people can't accept they can't hear well, or won't act on symptoms. People should seek help if they have trouble hearing conversations, TV, and other sounds, and should see a doctor quickly if they have hearing loss in only one ear, pain, ear drainage, or vertigo. Visits with an audiologist and otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat doctor) are typically needed to get prescription hearing aids. Over-the-counter hearing aids are expected to be available online and in stores starting in late 2022.

In August 2022, the FDA approved a new category of safe, regulated hearing aids to be sold over the counter. The devices are meant only for people with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss who need to amplify the volume of sounds around them.

Around menopause, a decline in estrogen can trigger low-grade inflammation that leads to unexpected symptoms from head to toe. Symptoms can affect the digestive tract, skin, joints, eyes, ears, and heart, among other areas. A 2022 study found that estrogen loss can even fuel the jaw pain known as temporomandibular disorder. A year or longer can pass before many women connect symptoms with menopause. Women can take lifestyle measures to lower inflammation, such as eating more fruits and vegetables, avoiding processed foods, and exercising.

While there is no cure for tinnitus—the mysterious condition that causes a sound in the head with no external source—many people can manage symptoms and control their reaction by practicing sound therapy, masking, counseling or cognitive behavioral therapy. Sound therapy helps to change your brain's perception of tinnitus so it learns to ignore the noise, while masking works to cover up the sounds with background noise like white noise, ambient sounds, and nature music.

A ringing sound in one or both ears is usually a form of an annoying condition called tinnitus. When tinnitus persists, treatment  such as cognitive behavioral therapy, tinnitus retraining therapy or biofeedback, can ease symptoms.

This often scary condition can happen at almost any time.

Everyone experiences an occasional bout of feeling dizzy. But vertigo is a distinct type of dizziness, with an estimated 40% of adults suffering from it at least once in their lifetime — and the risk rises with age.

"Because vertigo often strikes out of the blue, an acute attack can be potentially dangerous by increasing your risk of a fall," says Dr. Howard LeWine, chief medical editor of Harvard Health Publishing. "While there is no cure for most causes of vertigo, there are ways to reduce symptoms during an attack and avoid recurrent episodes."