Presbycusis (presby = elder, cusis = hearing) is the loss of hearing that gradually occurs in most individuals as they grow old. Everyone who lives long enough will develop some degree of presbycusis, some sooner than others. Those who damage their ears from loud noise exposure will develop it sooner. It is estimated that 40-50 percent of people 75 and older have some degree of hearing loss. It involves a progressive loss of hearing, beginning with high-frequency sounds such as speech. The loss associated with presbycusis is usually greater for high-pitched sounds. It may be difficult for someone to hear the nearby chirping of a bird or the ringing of a telephone whereas they would be able to hear low pitched voices. Presbycusis most often occurs in both ears, affecting them equally.

There may be many causes for presbycusis, but it most commonly occurs because of age-related changes, it can result from changes in the inner or middle ear or from complex changes along the nerve pathways leading to the brain.

Presbycusis may be caused by changes in the blood supply to the ear because of heart disease, high blood pressure, vascular (pertaining to blood vessels) conditions caused by diabetes, or other circulatory problems.

Side effects of some tablets or injections.

Age-related hearing loss tends to occur in families.

Certain diseases like auto- immune diseases.

There are many strategies to help people with presbycusis.

Hearing aids may be recommended for some individuals.

Assistive listening devices can provide further improvement in hearing ability in certain situations like built-in telephone amplifier.

Training in speech reading (using visual cues to determine what is being spoken) can help those with presbycusis to understand better what is being said in conversations or presentations.

Patients are advised to wear ear plugs or special fluid-filled ear muffs to prevent further damage to hearing.

Cochlear implants are done for younger people with hearing loss.

The majority of people with autoimmune hearing loss recover substantial amounts of the loss with corticosteroid and other anti-immune treatments.

Audiologist - Health care professional who is trained to evaluate hearing loss and related disorders, including balance (vestibular) disorders and tinnitus, and to rehabilitate individuals with hearing loss and related disorders.

Auditory Nerve - Eighth cranial nerve that connects the inner ear to the brainstem and is responsible for hearing and balance.

Auditory Perception - Ability to identify, interpret, and attach meaning to sound.

Auditory Prosthesis - Device that substitutes or enhances the ability to hear.

Augmentative Devices - Tools that help individuals with limited or absent speech to communicate, such as communication boards, pictographs.

Cochlea - Snail - shaped structure in the inner ear that contains the organ of hearing.

Cochlear Implant - Medical device that bypasses damaged structures in the inner ear and directly stimulates the auditory nerve, allowing some deaf individuals to learn to hear and interpret sounds and speech.

Ear Wax - Yellow secretion from glands in the outer ear (cerumen) that keeps the skin of the ear dry and protected from infection.

Hearing - Series of events in which sound waves in the air are converted to electrical signals, which are sent as nerve impulses to the brain, where they are interpreted.

Hearing Aid - Electronic device that brings amplified sound to the ear. A hearing aid usually consists of a microphone, amplifier, and receiver.

Hearing Disorder - Disruption in the normal hearing process that may occur in outer, middle, or inner ear, whereby sound waves are not converted to electrical signals and nerve impulses are not transmitted to the brain to be interpreted.

Inner Ear - Part of the ear that contains both the organ of hearing (the cochlea) and the organ of balance (the labyrinth).

Labyrinth - Organ of balance locted in the inner ear. The labyrinth consists of three semicircular canals and the vestibule.