Hearing impairment history and symptoms

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief:

Many persons may not recognize changes in their hearing and others may be embarrassed or frustrated by their perceived deficits. As constant asking for repetition of information can be embarrassing. A focused otologic history with information on the chronicity and onset of hearing loss, along with otoscopy can help is early recognition and treatment.

The care provider should inquire about the following:^[1]

• Duration of symptoms
• Associated symptoms
• Any things that make it better
• Anything that makes it worse
• Focused medical history
• Family history
• Any exposure to loud noise
• Drugs patients have used in past
• Occupation
• Exposure to radiation
• Trauma to head and neck

• Otorrhea
• Associated dizziness
• Tinnitus
• Laterality
• People mumble
• Rely on reading lips

Symptoms of hearing loss also include:

• Certain sounds seem too loud
• Difficulty understanding conversations when two or more people are talking
• Difficulty hearing in noisy places
• Difficult to tell high-pitched sounds (“s” or “th”) from one other
• Less trouble hearing men’s voices than women’s voices because of differences in the pitch of the sound
• Problems hearing when there is background noise
• Voices that sound mumbled or slurred

Other symptoms include:

• Cognitive impairment

• Feeling of being dizzy (more common with Meniere’s disease and acoustic neuroma)
• Pressure in the ear (fluid in the middle ear)
• Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Withdrawal from relationships and hobbies
• Poor word discrimination can be signs of hearing loss