Do you struggle to understand the voices around you? Or have you suddenly lost hearing in one ear? Gradual or sudden changes in your hearing can be a source of worry. This article will answer your questions on whether your hearing loss is temporary or permanent and when you should see a doctor.
What Causes Hearing Loss?
Hearing loss occurs when any part of the auditory pathway to the brain is disrupted. The auditory pathway contains the following parts:
- Outer ear. The outer ear includes the outer part of the ear, ear canal, and eardrum.
- Middle ear. The middle ear includes three tiny bones known as the malleus, incus, and stapes.
- Inner ear. The inner ear contains a special structure called the cochlea. The cochlea is filled with thousands of stereocilia, or microscopic hair cells, which detect and convert sound waves into electrical signals.
- Auditory nerve. The auditory nerve is the nerve that carries electrical signals from the cochlea to the brain.
Depending on what part of the auditory pathway is disrupted, the resulting hearing loss can be classified into one of three categories:
- Sensorineural hearing loss. This type of hearing loss is the most common and affects nearly 9 out of 10 people with hearing loss. Sensorineural hearing loss occurs when either the cochlea or auditory nerve are damaged.
- Conductive hearing loss. This type of hearing loss results when sound does not reach the inner ear due to damage in the outer ear or middle ear. The most common reasons for conductive hearing loss are obstruction within the ear canal or trauma to the eardrum.
- Mixed hearing loss. This hearing loss is caused by a combination of sensorineural and conductive hearing loss.
What is Temporary Hearing Loss?
Temporary hearing loss is when one’s hearing loss only lasts for a short duration of time. With temporary hearing loss, one’s normal hearing is restored by itself or after correcting the underlying cause. Temporary hearing loss is contrasted with permanent hearing loss, which cannot be corrected. Some instances of temporary hearing loss, if not corrected in time, can lead to permanent hearing loss.
What Causes Temporary Hearing Loss?
The only way to determine if your hearing loss is temporary or permanent is to know the cause of your hearing loss. Once the cause of your hearing loss is known, a doctor can better determine whether the condition is temporary or permanent. Several conditions that are known to cause temporary hearing loss are discussed below. With treatment and time, the symptoms of temporary hearing loss should go away. The more severe the damage is, the more time it will take to resolve itself.
Causes for Temporary Hearing Loss
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL)
NIHL is a type of sensorineural hearing loss. It is also one of the most common reasons for temporary hearing loss, called a “temporary threshold shift”. Deep inside our inner ears, stereocilia detect sound waves and transmit the information as electrical signals. These fragile stereocilia can be damaged by loud noises that are 85 dBA or higher.

These loud noises can come from industrial equipment, construction work, firearms, fireworks, motorcycles, or concerts. Sufferers of NIHL generally experience muffled hearing and/or ringing in the ears (tinnitus) for one to three days following the noise insult.
Earwax
When earwax becomes impacted in the ear canal, sound waves can no longer travel to the eardrum. Until the wax is removed, you may experience a temporary hearing loss in the impacted ear. It is not advised to use cotton swabs to remove earwax.

Q-tips may make the problem worse by pushing the earwax deeper into the ear canal. The best ways to remove wax from the ears is with warm water irrigation or with the help of a medical professional.
Ear infection
Ear infections are caused by inflammation and the accumulation of fluid in the middle ear. When this occurs, sounds can become muted by an average of 24 dB. Ear infections can last from weeks to even months before resolving.Sometimes they will resolve on their own, but oftentimes a physician will need to prescribe a medication.
Head trauma

An injury to the head can result in a ruptured eardrum, blood accumulation in the middle ear, damage to the bones in the middle ear, or disruption of blood flow to the inner ear. These injuries can take up to two months to heal.
Chronic stress
The tiny stereocilia within our cochlea depend on sufficient blood flow and nutrients to survive. Chronic stress can cause a decrease or total cessation of blood circulation to the inner ear. If treated in time, the stereocilia can recover. However, if not treated in time, chronic stress will cause irreversible damage to the stereocilia.
Excessive exercise

Strenuous exercise can lead to problems such as temporary hearing loss. In some situations, excessive exercise can lead to a ruptured eardrum or an imbalance in pressure in your inner ear.
Medication
There are over two hundred medicines that are considered ototoxic. Ototoxic is defined as having a toxic or harmful effect on the ear or auditory nerve. Examples of known ototoxic drugs include chemotherapy agents, diuretics, hydrocodone, Viagra, and aspirin (in high doses). The negative side effects of these drugs can somtimes be reversed once the drugs are discontinued.
Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSHL)
Nearly 5,000 people in the United States each year experience a type of temporary hearing loss that is so sudden, it is referred to as sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL), or sudden deafness. This can be accompanied by a popping or ringing sound and can occur intermittently over several days. A viral infection is thought to be the cause of a SSHL, but oftentimes the etiology is unknown. Prompt treatment (within 72 hours of the initial onset of the hearing loss) by an ENT physician is crucial for hearing loss recovery.
Can Temporary Hearing Loss Become Permanent?
Temporary hearing loss has numerous causes. Some of these causes can be resolved on their own while others require intervention. If the underlying cause for temporary hearing loss is not corrected in some situations, the damage can become permanent. Permanent hearing loss can not only arise from untreated cases of temporary hearing loss, there are also conditions that result in permanent hearing loss on their own. Several conditions that are known to cause permanent hearing loss are discussed below.
Causes for Permanent Hearing Loss
Repeated noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL)
If a person has repeated or constant exposure to loud noises, their ears may be unable to recover. It is recommended that a person wear hearing protection, such as earplugs or headphones, when exposed to loud noises over a long period of time.
Age-related hearing loss
This type of hearing loss is also referred to as presbycusis. It is a permanent type of hearing loss that occurs gradually as one ages. It tends to manifest as difficulty in understanding speech or hearing high frequency sounds. One may have a hard time hearing children’s voices, doorbells, and ringtones. Statistics show that one third of adults between the ages of 65 and 75 and over one half of adults beyond the age of 75 suffer from age-related hearing loss.
Genetic conditions
Most often, when a genetic condition affects one’s hearing, the hearing loss presents itself at birth. However, there are other genetic diseases and disorders that do not develop until one is older. One example is otosclerosis, which is characterized by abnormal bone growth in the middle ear that typically manifests when one is between 20 to 30 years old.
Illness or Viral infection
There are several illnesses and viral infections that have been shown to cause permanent hearing damage. These include, but are not limited to, Meniere’s disease, acoustic neuroma, diabetes, heart disease, and mumps.
Head trauma
An injury to the head can cause permanent damage to parts of the ear, auditory nerve, or brain. As a result, one may suffer from unilateral hearing loss in one ear or bilateral hearing loss in both ears.
Sleep apnea
Research has revealed a strong correlation between sleep apnea and permanent hearing damage. It is believed that sleep apnea reduces circulation to the inner ear, which can cause permanent damage to the auditory pathway. In addition, sleep apnea may cause permanent hearing loss due to constant exposure to one’s own snoring.
Excessive drinking
Excessive drinking can damage the central auditory cortex of the brain resulting in permanent hearing loss.
Smoking
Smoking can effect oxygen levels in the inner ear which makes permanent hearing loss more likely.
When to Visit a Doctor
Have you recently gone to a concert and are now experiencing muffled and distorted hearing? You probably know the reason for your sudden hearing loss, and your hearing should be back to normal within a few days. However, if you are experiencing any change with your hearing and do not know the cause, visit a qualified professional immediately. Changes to your hearing must be identified quickly in order to mitigate permanent damage.
Sources
- Boston Medical Center. “Ear Infection and Hearing Loss.” https://www.bmc.org/patient-care/conditions-we-treat/db/ear-infection-and-hearing-loss?msclkid=707c1d77a71911ecb1e8f847433a6944. Accessed Mar. 18, 2022.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “How Does Loud Noise Cause Hearing Loss?” Nov. 24, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hearing_loss/how_does_loud_noise_cause_hearing_loss.html#:~:text=Hearing%20Loss%20Can%20Be%20Temporary%20or%20Permanent,-Hearing%20loss%20is&text=In%20some%20cases%2C%20hearing%20loss,the%20inner%20ear%20(cochlea). Accessed Mar. 18, 2022.
- Healthy Hearing. “Hearing Loss Causes.” Jul. 12, 2021. https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/hearing-loss/causes. Accessed Mar. 16, 2022.
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. “Noise-Induced Hearing Loss.” Mar. 16, 2022. https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/noise-induced-hearing-loss#:~:text=Sometimes%20exposure%20to%20impulse%20or,term%20damage%20to%20your%20hearing. Accessed Mar. 18, 2022.
- Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons. “Ototoxic Medications.” https://nvrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Drugs-that-Cause-HL1.pdf?msclkid=c5136306a71d11ec951fbd9e1b0aad9f. Access Mar. 18, 2022.
- Nuheara. “Potential Causes of Hearing Going In and Out.” Aug. 15, 2020. https://www.nuheara.com/news/hearing-going-in-and-out/. Accessed Mar. 18, 2022.
- Southwestern Hearing Centers. “How To Tell if Hearing Loss is Permanent or Temporary.” https://www.southwesternhearing.com/how-to-tell-if-hearing-loss-is-permanent-or-temporary/?msclkid=efd53330a57211eca255cb7cccc278f3. Accessed Mar. 16, 2022.
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