Ear Damage (English Version)

By Manfred Stoifl (Hearing aid Acoustician) AAHA, Vienna, Austria 

There are many kinds of ear damage depending on the location the damage happened within the ear, and the peripheral hearing system.

The outer ear consists of the Auricle and the ear canal. The most common ear damage in this area would be atresia or malformations. The Auricle can be missing or be misshaped which will have a direct impact of the ability to collect sounds and on directional hearing. In most instances surgical grafting or auricle prostheses are possible and will greatly improve hearing and cosmetic appearance. 

A misshaped ear canal will alter the sounds frequency response and a missing ear canal will result in sever conductive hearing problems. Possible solutions include surgical intervention to create an ear canal or use of conductive hearing devices which will transfer sounds directly to the inner ear.

The middle ear consists of the eardrum; the ossicles and the middle are muscles. The middle ear converts sound waves into mechanical energy and amplifies the sounds due to the area difference between eardrum, stapes footplate, and the leverage of the ossicles.

Perforated eardrums are commonly caused by strong air pressure or middle ear infections. In most cases the eardrum will heal by itself within a few months from the injury once the underlying cause like an infection has been treated - if this does not happen different surgical intervention can provide solutions. 

Damage to the ossicles may require surgical intervention and maybe replacement of one or several of the ossicles. Most common causes are ossification of the joints between the ossicles or on the stapes footplate or chronic middle ear infections. If surgical intervention is not possible or not successful, conductive hearing aids will provide a good alternative solution.

The inner ear is the most complex and important part of the ear and peripheral hearing. Within its structure, the inner ear converts mechanical energy into electrical impulses and transfers them to the brain.  The conversion to electrical impulses happens with the help of thousands of hair cells. Each group of hair cells is responsible for a certain frequency range. Damage or absence of some of these hair cells results in an absence, or imperfect conversion to electrical impulses of certain frequencies. 

Among the most common causes for inner ear problems are genetic disposition, noise exposure, ototoxic drugs and normal aging process. In most cases hearing aids and central auditory training or a combination of both is the most effective way to improve hearing.