← Return to SSNHL with Sound Distortion / Crackling - Why??

Discussion

SSNHL with Sound Distortion / Crackling - Why??

Hearing Loss | Last Active: Jan 17 8:45am | Replies (25)
Comment receiving replies
@thomperman

I have the exact same issue. Had OK hearing up through 6khz. Then I got really sick with Flu and a head cold a few weeks ago. My right ear dropped to moderate hearing loss above 1khz. All the sounds in and above that range now sound garbled… like underwater or people are gargling. It’s an electronic distortion. I did prednisone and steroid shots to no avail. It did return some of my hearing, but not all. Sadly the electronic sounding distortion remains. I’ve been led to believe that the flu caused a virus to attack my inner ear. That virus supposedly damaged the hearing cells in the cochlea to where they are sending mixed signals to my brain. The brain is interpreting them as distortion. Not sure I’m completely behind that theory, but it’s what the ENT has been pushing.

Jump to this post

Replies to "I have the exact same issue. Had OK hearing up through 6khz. Then I got really..."
Julie, Volunteer Mentor | @julieo4 | Jan 10 1:26pm

Research indicates that once the inner hair cells in the human cochlea are damaged, they will not heal or grow back. It's encouraging to know there is ongoing research in this area. That research has found that some animal species do regrow damaged inner ear cells. This is not the case with humans, but there is always hope that a cure is possible someday.

Meanwhile, cochlear implants, which can bypass the damaged cochlea in humans and stimulate the dormant auditory nerve which allows signals to reach the brain is possible.

We question what caused this cochlear cell damage in the first place. In many cases those cells are damaged by extreme noise which happens suddenly or in duration. It may also be caused by viruses and even genetics. Regardless, it doesn't usually cause total deafness. It causes distortion or the inability to hear in certain frequencies. And, it tends to worsen over time. The degree of severity is shown in audiological testing which should include word recognition testing, speech understanding in noise, etc.

There is always a hope for a cure sometime in the future, but the question becomes how long will that take to happen?

Has your ENT mentioned cochlear implants?

VIEW AND REPLY