In most cases, it is a transient issue, which often recovers spontaneously, and no further management other than monitoring is required. Otitis media with effusion is the most common cause of acquired hearing loss in children.

Pathologies in the middle ear resulting in a conductive hearing loss include acute otitis media and otitis media with effusion (commonly referred to as glue ear). Perforation can be attributed to trauma using cotton swabs to clean the ear, barotrauma from deep water diving, or as a sequela of otitis media. Perforation of the tympanic membrane can also cause a conductive hearing loss. More commonly, problems arise at the external canal by obstruction from debris, wax, or foreign bodies. This anomaly occurs due to the maldevelopment of the first and second branchial arches and the first branchial cleft. Problems with the external ear and auditory canal may be due to congenital abnormalities such as aural atresia, which results in the incomplete formation of the external ear. Thus, a thorough understanding of conductive hearing loss is paramount for all clinicians. Conductive hearing loss is a disease process frequently encountered by otolaryngologists, general practitioners, nurses, and audiologists.Ĭonductive hearing loss can be produced by any defect in the pinna, external auditory canal, tympanic membrane, and ossicles, up to the footplate of the stapes. The causes can also range from the trivial otitis media with effusion in young children to potentially severe conditions such as an effusion caused by a nasopharyngeal tumor in adults.

Many anatomical structures in this area are susceptible to a wide range of pathologies.Ĭonductive hearing loss is prevalent and affects a wide demographic, from the very young to the elderly. This is because a pathology anywhere from the pinna and the external acoustic meatus to the foot of the stapes bone can produce a conductive hearing loss (abnormal mechanical transmission of sound from the EAC to the cochlea). Conductive hearing loss encompasses a range of conditions.

Hearing loss is often divided into three types: conductive, sensorineural, and mixed.

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