Did you know that there are currently around 430 million people around the world that require help for hearing loss? The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that by 2050, 700 million will require access to ear and hearing care! That’s a big jump. To better understand the current and future trajectory of hearing health, WHO published its first ‘World Report on Hearing.’ Reports like these are critical to not only professionals in the audiology field but for the everyday person as well. Aging, disease, genetics, and injury-related hearing loss are difficult to prevent, however, nearly 100% of noise-induced hearing loss is preventable. Let’s take a look into what the WHO found:

Important Takeaways

Almost 60% of hearing loss among children can be prevented through measures such as:

• Immunization for prevention of rubella and meningitis
• Improved maternal and neonatal care
• Screening for, and early management of, otitis media – inflammatory diseases of the middle ear

In adults, hearing loss can be prevented through:

• Noise control
• Safe listening
• Surveillance of ototoxic medicines
• Good ear hygiene

Proactive and preventative care is essential to maintaining good hearing health:

• Conduct clinical screenings at strategic points in life to identify hearing loss as early as possible
• Utilize recent technology advancements to identify ear disease and hearing loss
• Use timely and appropriate medical and surgical treatment
• Get properly fitted for personal hearing technology (i.e. hearing aids or cochlear implants)

Overall, the report concludes the most glaring gap in hearing health among individuals is that hearing care is not integrated into national health systems. This can make finding the proper care a little more difficult to find and navigate. At Center for Hearing, we are committed to helping people of all ages hear their best. Our team of dedicated and trained professionals is here to help you feel confident about your hearing health!

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.
(479) 785-3277
https://www.centerforhearing.net/

 

Read the full WHO report here: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/world-report-on-hearing