Hearing is one of our senses that plays an important role in the individual’s relationship with his environment. It is also necessary to provide speech function. It facilitates the establishment of healthy relationships with our environment and opens the door to intuitive experiences. Acıbadem Ankara Hospital Ear Nose and Throat Specialist Assoc. Dr. Ali Titiz “World Hearing Day is a protective activity that was held on 3 March. The aim of today is to raise awareness on ear and hearing health around the world and to raise awareness of the society on this issue. The World Health Organization reports that 60 of the factors that cause hearing loss are preventable. From this point of view, early detection of hearing loss and protection from external influences that may cause hearing loss constitute the most important basic step in solving this problem.
Early diagnosis is important
Congenital or disease-related hearing loss in childhood is at the forefront; Ali Titiz, who stated that in the adult age group, the noise exposure in working life can cause hearing problems, “From this point of view, early diagnosis of hearing loss is of great importance. Evaluation of our hearing and speech function, which develops to a great extent in the first 2 years, and identifying and intervening hearing loss, if any, in this period ensures that the child ceases to be a hearing and speech-impaired individual and is included in the society as a normal individual. With the “newborn hearing screening program”, which has been widely and successfully applied in our country in recent years, this problem can be determined with advanced audiological tests in the newborn period and hearing can be corrected with classical hearing aids or advanced cochlear implant applications in individuals with problems.
Minimize noise with the use of headphones
Stating that exposure to sounds and noise in industrial societies can cause serious damage to the ear, Ali Titiz said that due to exposure to noise, employees may experience complete or almost complete hearing loss. Stating that the intensity of the noise and the duration of exposure are decisive in the development of hearing loss, Titiz said, “We can reduce or almost completely eliminate noise both in daily life and in working environments. For this purpose, controlling and isolation of noise sources, use of headphones and ensuring rotational working order in the working environment are the most important protective factors for the hearing health of individuals.
Hearing problem affects social life
“Reducing noise in the working environment or protecting employees from noise will positively affect work efficiency,” said Ali Titiz, and continued his words as follows: “A good sound environment requires a preventive, stable and long-term approach to noise injuries. Whether it is a child or an adult, the development of hearing loss can partially or completely isolate individuals from their environment. For this reason, our hearing and speaking functions form the basis of a healthy communication in society. Considering that speech development can be achieved with a healthy hearing, the importance of hearing will be better understood. The solution of the problems that develop due to hearing loss enables the individual to participate in social life strongly and increases the quality of life.
Hearing aid use should be diffused
Stating that the use of hearing aids is low in our country, Ali Titiz said, “While the acceptance of hearing aids for auditory rehabilitation is more comfortable in individuals with complete hearing loss, the acceptance of hearing aid use for auditory rehabilitation, especially in adults with mild to moderate hearing loss, is very low not only in our country but also all over the world. In this situation, which is seen as both a cosmetic and a sign of old age by the person, failure to correct our auditory sense will negatively affect the quality of life in the social environment. From this point of view, it is known that the use of glasses in the society is of great importance in terms of the rehabilitation of our visual sense and if they can be used in all age groups without wasting time, we, as otolaryngologists, hope that a similar approach will be observed in hearing loss.
Source: (BHA) – Beyaz News Agency
