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Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss is fairly common and might explain why you can hear a pin drop, but not be able to make out what your partner is saying. You’re born with tiny hairs called cilia in your inner ear that move when sound waves are present. Nerves translate the movement of these tiny hairs into information that goes to your brain where it gets interpreted into distinct sounds and frequencies.

The better the movements are interpreted, the more easily you’re able to hear distinctions between sounds such as “D” and “T” or hear letters like “S”, “H” and “F”. Unfortunately, the cilia are extremely delicate and can be harmed by loud noise or other trauma.

Cilia also help your brain determine how loud a sound is, where it’s coming from, and how far away it is.

The Most Common Causes of Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Sensorineural hearing loss happens when these tiny hairs are damaged. Often, this type of hearing loss is gradual, which is why many people associate it with aging. It’s thought that animals are able to regrow these hairs and regain their hearing when their cilia get damaged, but humans don’t seem to have this ability naturally.

Common causes of sensorineural hearing loss are:

Loud sounds
Head injuries or other trauma
Diseases like diabetes or autoimmune disease
High blood pressure
Some medications
How to Deal with Sensorineural Hearing Loss
While there are no current medical treatments to heal cilia, you can successfully address sensorineural hearing loss with hearing technology such as hearing aids.