Muffled hearing can present for a wide variety of reasons. For most people, it’s a short-term situation. In other instances, muffled hearing can be a precursor of more substantial hearing-related issues. Partly, that’s because, aside from sudden hearing loss, hearing loss is generally not a condition that develops suddenly. Symptoms develop gradually and over time.
One of the earliest symptoms of slowly progressing long-term hearing loss is the feeling that your hearing is muffled. Muffled hearing, however, isn’t necessarily a sign that you are developing permanent hearing loss. Indeed, millions of people experience muffled hearing every year.
You might be wondering: when do I need to be worried about muffled hearing? Generally, the answer varies. Understanding the root cause of your muffled hearing is critical to finding the correct treatment strategy. Additional damage can be avoided and your hearing can get back to normal with some prompt solutions. You will be able to get back to enjoying the sounds of your life after you get us to assist you with some successful treatments.
What is muffled hearing?
Muffled hearing occurs when sound is unable to move through your outer, middle, and inner ear in the way that it normally does. This leads to a noticeable decrease in sound quality. In the majority of cases, those with muffled hearing can still hear some or even most things, but things sound quieter or jumbled. Hearing speech and language can be especially challenging.
Your ears will frequently also feel clogged up when your hearing is muffled. Many people have experienced this feeling temporarily, for example, when they have a cold or are taking a flight. This clogged feeling, however, doesn’t always come along with muffled hearing.
What causes muffled hearing?
Muffled hearing can be caused by all kinds of problems. In order to develop the appropriate course of treatment, it’s essential to establish the root cause. Here are several of the most prevalent causes:
- Earwax buildup: Earwax is generally a helpful thing. The health of your ear canal depends on the production of earwax. However, too much earwax can ultimately cause muffled hearing (or even hearing loss). This earwax can usually be loosened up by using a couple of drops of hydrogen peroxide. Do not utilize a cotton swab to attempt to free the earwax, as cotton swabs can compact your earwax and make the problem worse. We can help if the problem persists.
- Infection: In some cases, problems such as infections (including sinus infections or ear infections) can result in swelling in the ear canal (this is particularly true with ear infections). This swelling can cause your ear canal to swell shut, effectively diminishing your ability to hear. Muffled hearing symptoms brought on by infections will typically go away after the root illness has been dealt with.
- Travel: The changing air pressure related to air travel can frequently cause a feeling of fullness in the ear, followed closely by muffled hearing. Your hearing will go back to normal relatively quickly once your physical conditions return to normal.
- Sensorineural hearing loss: Hearing loss caused by noise-related damage can sometimes bring about muffled hearing. Unfortunately, this type of hearing loss is usually permanent. One of the very first recognizable symptoms is muffled hearing; but by the time you notice the distorted sounds, damage to your stereocilia has likely already taken place. You should seek out treatment rapidly to avoid your hearing getting significantly worse quickly.
- Meniere’s Disease: Meniere’s Disease is a chronic balance and hearing issue. Over time, this disease can cause tinnitus, hearing loss (often beginning with muffled hearing), and dizziness or loss of balance. The symptoms of Menier’s disease can be treated but not cured.
- Age-associated hearing loss: Most people will experience decreasing hearing as they age. Obviously, when you’re 80 all of your senses will be less sharp than when you were 18. This normal decline in your hearing ability can cause muffled hearing over time.
The exact symptoms of muffled hearing will differ depending on the base cause.
Is there a cure for muffled hearing?
Not all forms of muffled hearing can be cured. The root cause of your muffled hearing will determine the treatment method. For example, if excess earwax buildup is the primary cause, we may use specific tools to help you clear out your ear canal. Muffled hearing caused by an ear infection will likely clear up once the infection has been addressed, so antibiotics are frequently prescribed.
Symptom management is generally the approach when you have sensorineural hearing loss rather than a cure. That’s because there’s no cure for sensorineural hearing loss. However, symptoms can be controlled. This might take a number of forms, but the most prevalent is using a set of hearing aids so that you can bring clarity to what you hear.
Hearing aids can help you stay connected to loved ones and go about your daily activities without a significantly noticeable effect, especially when this process is initiated promptly.
Avoiding muffled hearing
Some types of muffled hearing are difficult to avoid, no matter what. For instance, ear infections and sinus infections are hard to reliably avoid.
However, in most cases, routine hearing tests can help you steer clear of many of the causes of muffled hearing and detect any permanent hearing loss early. Contact us for an appointment right away.