More than 48 million Americans suffer from hearing loss. While this condition is often viewed as an inevitable part of aging, over half of all patients are otherwise healthy adults under the age of 65. Regular hearing screenings are an invaluable tool in identifying problems early and taking steps to prevent further hearing damage before it is too late. Fortunately, an audiologist can treat nearly all types of hearing loss. With October being Audiology Awareness Month, we encourage you to schedule an appointment for a hearing screening with one of our audiologists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Audiology is the study of hearing and balance disorders. The goal of this national month-long observance is to raise awareness of audiology and the importance of hearing protection in preventing hearing loss. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Several factors including noise exposure, trauma, diseases of the inner and middle ear, ear infections, excess earwax and certain medications can all cause hearing loss. It can happen so gradually that you may not be aware of a problem until it has reached an advanced stage. Signs and symptoms of hearing loss include difficulty understanding others when they speak (speech may appear to be muffled or garbled), asking speakers to frequently repeat what they have said, the inability to distinguish speech from distracting background sounds, turning up the volume to levels that others find too loud and tinnitus (ringing in the ears).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Audiologists are licensed and certified professionals with advanced degrees in the hearing and balance sciences. They evaluate, diagnose and treat hearing and balance disorders in children and adults; prescribe, fit and dispense hearing devices; and provide hearing rehabilitation training and counseling to patients and their families. They may also treat individuals of all ages with tinnitus and central auditory processing disorders, in addition to developing hearing conservation programs and newborn hearing screenings. Audiologists work in settings as varied as hospitals, clinics, ENT offices, universities, schools, government, military and Veteran\u2019s Administration (VA) hospitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At ENT Associates of Alabama, we pair a physician and audiologist together for a team approach toward evaluating and treating hearing loss. This ensures that you receive the most comprehensive medical care, diagnosis and management for your hearing loss, regardless of the severity. Our aural rehabilitation program helps you learn about measures you can take to improve your communication skills while developing a personalized hearing treatment plan that will provide you with strategies for effective communication. We want to reconnect you with your world and improve your quality of life! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your hearing is crucial to your wellbeing. If you want to take care of your hearing health, contact ENT Associates of Alabama today for a comprehensive hearing evaluation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
More than 48 million Americans suffer from hearing loss. While this condition is often viewed as an inevitable part of aging, over half of all patients are otherwise healthy adults under the age of 65. Regular hearing screenings are an invaluable tool in identifying problems early and taking steps to prevent further hearing damage before…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2278"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2280,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions\/2280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entalabama.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}