Conductive Hearing Loss.
About Conductive Hearing Loss
Your ear is made up of three parts— the outer, the middle, and the inner ear. A conductive hearing loss happens when sounds cannot get through the outer and middle ear. It may be hard to hear soft sounds. Louder sounds may be muffled.
Treatment
The treatment of conductive hearing loss is dependent on the underlying condition. Any foreign body should be removed under direct visualization, with the aid of a microscope if required.[25] Wax and debris which is obstructing the ear canal should be amenable to micro-suction. Perforations of the tympanic membrane often heal independently and only require a clinic follow-up evaluation in 6-8 weeks to ensure total healing.[26] If the perforation has not sealed, then a myringoplasty may be necessary; however, the hearing effects are somewhat more unpredictable.
Otitis media with effusion usually resolves by itself and can just be monitored every three months. However, if persistent bilateral otitis media with effusion occurs over three months, and the hearing loss in the better ear is over 25-30dB, grommet insertion may be valuable. Grommets enable ventilation of the middle ear to the external auditory canal, rather than ventilating to the nasopharynx via the Eustachian tubes. A myringotomy is performed, and any middle ear fluid is suctioned out before a grommet is placed in the anteroinferior quadrant. Adenoidectomy can also be performed if there is associated hearing loss with the effusions. The most common complications of grommets are infections and rarely tympanosclerosis. Grommets are favored to tympanostomy tubes (T-tubes) as the latter have higher rates of complications.