Can you reverse hearing loss

While animals like birds and reptiles have "notch inhibitor" class molecules, which stimulates regrowth in sensory hair cells after destruction of hearing, humans and other mammals do not, which is why our hearing loss is currently more permanent.

This new study suggests that a treatment could potentially act as the missing notch inhibitor and cause the lost hair cells to regrow and multiply in a semi-natural state. The article explains, "Each hair cell responds best to a particular frequency of sound — they are arranged in order of frequency along the cochlea — so scientists can pinpoint the effect of these new cells on hearing. When regenerated hair cells were then grown in the cochlea of mice, the pitches corresponding to their placement were better detected by the animals.

In , Dr. Albert Edge led a team of researchers to grow and regenerate hair cells in the cochlea of mice, which allowed the rodent to increasingly detect different kinds of sounds. With a cochlear implant, many people — even those with severe sensorineural hearing loss — have been able to reverse hearing loss partially. Depending on the nature and extent of the problem, people with conductive hearing loss can get some or even most of their hearing back.

However, not everyone can reverse or regain their hearing loss. Wax and foreign objects can be removed, sometimes noninvasively. Bacterial infections can be treated with antibiotics. Growths can be surgically removed. Your doctor might not be able to medically restore your hearing if you have conductive hearing loss caused by abnormalities such as:. Your doctor might recommend treating either the sensorineural or conductive hearing loss or both. You should also always do a test patch before using.

Supporters of natural healing recommend drinking ginger tea. To make your own, boil the following in a covered pot for 15 minutes:. Ginkgo biloba extract is a favorite of natural healers. Advocates of this type of treatment suggest that taking 60 to milligrams of ginkgo biloba per day can help with tinnitus and other noise associated with hearing loss.

Tea tree oil is believed by many to positively treat hearing loss and deafness. You should use this remedy with caution and be sure to mention it to your doctor before attempting. You can mix and then heat:. You can then place the mixture into your ears and sit still for five minutes. Some believers of natural treatment suggest cajeput essential oil can reverse hearing loss naturally. Before someone who still has some hearing can be considered a candidate, they must have tried hearing aids without success.

Good news : Seniors can get cochlear implants , too. Bone-anchored hearing systems , also called BAHAs, are surgically implanted devices. They're typically used for people who have hearing loss in one ear , or who have outer ear or ear canal malformations, such as microtia.

Surgery involves implanting a small metal device into the mastoid bone behind the ear. After the area has healed, the ENT or an audiologist fits the wearer with a device similar to a hearing aid hat fits snugly over the bone implant.

This devices converts sound to vibrations, which stimulate sound waves in the inner ear via the implant. Conductive hearing loss can result from the tiny bones of the middle ear becoming immobile and ineffective for transmitting sound to the inner ear. Otosclerosis is a common reason this can happen, and it results from extra bone material forming around the footplate of the stapes, the innermost bone of the middle ear.

A stapedectomy is a procedure in which the stapes is replaced with a prosthesis. This surgery is reserved for specific medical conditions that create conductive hearing loss and is not used for sensorineural hearing loss. Considered a minor surgery, this outpatient procedure can be done right in the ENT's otolaryngologist office.

Middle ear, or pressure equalization PE tubes, are used to alleviate pressure buildup behind the eardrum in cases of middle ear infection or fluid that cannot drain through the Eustachian tubes. This surgery isn't used to restore hearing per se, but it does help relieve fluid buildup that may be causing temporary hearing loss.

Children are the most common candidates for PE tubes because their not-yet-developed ear anatomy makes ear infections more prevalent than in adults. Middle ear infections and fluid buildup usually cause some temporary conductive hearing loss that will improve post-surgery. There are few "quick fixes" for hearing loss.

In most cases, hearing aids will be the recommended treatment. If you suspect you have hearing loss and need help, find a clinic in our directory and make the call. Joy Victory has extensive experience editing consumer health information.

Her training in particular has focused on how to best communicate evidence-based medical guidelines and clinical trial results to the public. She strives to make health content accurate, accessible and engaging to the public. Read more about Joy. Further study is necessary to determine what druglike molecules can achieve cell division and regeneration in larger mammals before clinical trials can begin on people. Until a drug is found that can prompt regeneration of stereocilia in adult human ears, there is no cure for hearing loss.

However, there are a number of options available to treat it.