HBOT May Help To Restore Acute Hearing Loss
Acute hearing loss, also known as sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL), happens when somebody loses hearing over the course of several days, or even instantly, with no apparent reason. Sometimes people hear a loud pop! sound just before they lose hearing. And the condition is often accompanied by dizziness or ringing in the ears. So how else might someone experience the deafness of SSHL? I’ll explain:
We measure the loudness of sounds in decibels. Normal speech is around 60 decibels, while complete silence is zero. Whispering is around 30 decibels. And those who experience acute hearing loss hear normal speech like a whisper at best. As you can imagine, to suddenly lose that much hearing can really change your life! And becoming suddenly deaf is not an occurrence to take lightly.
What Should I Do if I get Sudden Hearing Loss?
The most important advice I can give you is to see a doctor right away. Don’t wait thinking that the condition could go away on its own. Sudden hearing loss should be treated like an emergency! That’s because if you don’t get treatment within 10 days of onset, your hearing function will have limited chances of recovery. The first course of treatment is steroids. And adding hyperbaric oxygen therapy to this treatment has been proven to significantly improve outcomes for sudden hearing loss sufferers.
Medical evidence confirms that Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is a viable natural treatment for SSHL – and so does the FDA, which is why insurance companies often cover the therapy for our patients if they come in to see us within three months of the initial symptoms. Many patients have found that HBOT successfully reduces the severity of hearing loss.
How Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Helps to Restore Hearing
During hyperbaric oxygen therapy, patients lie in a sealed acrylic chamber where they breathe in pure oxygen at higher than normal atmospheric pressure. Having treatment feels somewhat like being in a pressurized airplane cabin. A patient’s ears may get a little plugged, but they can quickly relieve that sensation by holding their nose and blowing gently. Most people find the chamber is very comfortable.
Basically, HBOT treatment works by stimulating regeneration of the inner ears’ sensory cells. When patients lie in the chamber they are able to get far more oxygen than their lungs would normally allow. This O2 carries vital nutrients throughout the body via the bloodstream and stimulates growth factors and stem cells that promote healing. Please remember that the best possible hearing improvement occurs when patients get HBOT treatments right away!
If you have recently experienced sudden deafness and would like to learn how HBOT could reduce the severity of your hearing loss, please contact us without delay. Medicare and other insurers may pay for treatment if your hearing loss meets certain conditions. We will also gladly provide a personalized hyperbaric oxygen therapy consultation to see whether you could benefit from treatments. Simply click here to schedule an assessment. Our office staff will confirm your appointment soon. Otherwise, feel free to call us directly at 727-787-7077.