Nerve deafness is not a good description because the damage usually occurs within the inner ear and not the hearing nerve. Common causes of sensorineural hearing loss are ageing and exposure to loud noises. This type of hearing loss is usually not medically or surgically treatable, however, most people with this hearing loss find wearing hearing aids to be of significant benefit. Conductive hearing losses are often treatable with either medicine or surgery. Common causes of conductive hearing loss are fluid buildup in the middle ear or a blockage of wax in the ear canal.
Children are more likely to have a conductive hearing loss then a sensorineural hearing loss.
It can occur when a person has a permanent sensorineural hearing loss and then also develops a temporary conductive hearing loss. This page is maintained by Howard Gutnick, Ph.D. Please direct all inquiries related to the development and maintenance of this site to him. All other inquiries related to hearing loss and hearing aids should be posted to the AAC Audiology Question and Answer Section . This page was created by Audiologyinfo LLC and Glen Meier . No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information at this site, and neither is any damage resulting from the use of the information contained herein.