Beltone of the Tri-Cities - As the only full-service Beltone™ Hearing Instrument Specialist in the Tri-Cities area, we take pride in providing innovative, personalized hearing loss solutions and unbeatable friendly, caring service. Beltone of the Tri-Cities talks about spatial hearing loss.

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What Causes Spatial Hearing Loss and How is it Treated?
The inability to distinguish spatial cues is known as spatial hearing loss. People with spatial loss of hearing find it difficult to tell who is speaking in a noisy room or where a certain sound is coming from. People with this condition find it hard to cut out background sounds in noisy areas, such as bars, restaurants, or movie theaters. Spatial hearing loss is not centered in the ear. The brain is actually the culprit – the pathways that interpret sound are the root of spatial loss of hearing.
This condition can affect anyone, but it is found most often in adults over 60 and young children. Children with spatial hearing loss often have a difficult time understanding what is happening in their classroom-they are simply not able to process out background noise and focus on what the teacher is saying.
Audiologists use a test called the Listen in Spatialized Noise-Sentences, or LiSN-S, test to diagnose spatial hearing disorders. This test can assess how well a person can use spatial cues and pitch to hear speech among background noise. This lets the audiologist determine just how severe the person’s loss of spatial hearing is.
Spatial hearing loss does not always occur on its own. These include high- frequency and/or low-frequency hearing loss. Luckily, the spatial loss of hearing and the other hearing loss issues can often be treated simultaneously by simply wearing a hearing aid. Hearing aids aren’t a magic bullet for everyone. In fact, for some sufferers of spatial hearing loss, hearing aids can actually make the problem worse.

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Spatial hearing loss happens often in older people, due to the natural aging process and subsequent damage to the audio nerve. Medications, injury, vascular insufficiencies, or underlying medical conditions and diseases are also factors in the loss of spatial hearing. It is essential to seek medical attention immediately if you or your loved ones notice sudden hearing loss. Sudden hearing loss involving the middle ear may be due to illness, infection, or blockages that respond well to early treatment. If an infection or other underlying illness is causing the sudden loss of hearing and is not treated immediately, it could progress to the inner ear, seriously damaging auditory nerve pathways and resulting in permanent deafness or loss of spatial hearing.
If you experience sudden changes such as a unilateral loss of hearing, you are also at an increased risk of spatial hearing loss and should seek attention immediately. It can be challenging to know if your hearing has changed, so go get hearing tests regularly.