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Diseases & Conditions
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Gradual hearing loss that occurs as with age (presbycusis) is a common condition.
Symptoms may include:
- muffled quality of speech and other sounds
- difficulty understanding words, especially against background noise or in a crowd of people
- asking others to speak more slowly, clearly or loudly
- needing to turn up the volume of the television or radio
- withdrawal from conversations
Causes may include:
- gradual buildup of earwax - which blocks the ear canal and prevents conduction of sound waves.
- damage to the cochlea - tiny hairs in the cochlea may break or become bent, and nerve cells may degenerate.
- ear infection and abnormal bone growths or tumors of the outer or middle ear
- ruptured eardrum or other injury
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