What Type of Hearing Loss is a Cookie-Bite?
When it comes to hearing loss, most people have heard about profound and mild hearing loss. However, have you ever heard of cookie-bite hearing loss? If you're like most, you haven't. Understanding this type of hearing loss can allow you to better diagnose a potential problem with your own hearing or the hearing of a loved one.
What is Cookie-Bite Hearing Loss?
Cookie-bite hearing loss is defined as hearing loss where a patient's audiogram is shaped as the letter "U." This particular type of hearing loss happens when a person cannot hear the mid-range frequencies between 500 and 2,000 Hertz. This is the range where speech and music occur. Take our free online hearing test to see where your range is!
With cookie-bite hearing loss, patients can still hear other frequencies. They can hear birds chirping at high frequencies and thunder rolling at low frequencies. This type of sensorineural hearing loss results from damage to the inner ear or the nerve that transmits auditory data to your brain. Cookie-bite hearing loss is much less common than other types of hearing loss, including age-related and noise-induced hearing loss.
The Symptoms and Causes of Cookie-Bite Hearing Loss?
Some key symptoms can indicate you may be experiencing cookie-bite hearing loss. These include the following:
- Difficulty hearing in social environments
- Constantly turning up the volume on electronic devices
- Reduced perception of music, speech, and environmental noises
Genetic factors typically cause this particular type of hearing loss. Patients may have this condition as a congenital one, or it may develop over time as they age. Only on very rare occasions will this condition be caused by a tumor, which is known as acoustic neuroma or vestibular schwannoma. Any hearing care professional can assist you in determining the root cause of your cookie-bite hearing loss.
What Treatment Options Are There?
Regarding cookie-bite hearing loss, hearing care professionals use a combined treatment approach. First, they will outfit you with hearing aids. This will help amplify the mid-range frequencies you have difficulty hearing on your own.
Second, they will help you learn adaptive approaches for different types of situations that you may enter. For example, they may suggest choosing optimal seating so you can see the face and read the lips of whoever you're conversing with. Additionally, seating yourself away from background noise sources can significantly reduce the interference that makes it difficult to hear conversations.
Call Us Today
If you're experiencing trouble with your hearing aids, it's time to contact us at Beltone Skoric Hearing Aid Center. Let our helpful hearing care specialists assist you with all of your hearing-related needs.
Resources:
https://hoffmannaudiology.com/blog/cookie-bite-hearing-loss-what-you-need-to-know
