A new study suggests that the majority of the U.S. adult population is expected to be inflicted with hearing disorders in the coming decades.
The number U.S. adults who are 20 years and above and with hearing disorders is expected to rise from 44 million in 2020 to 73.5 million in 2060, which is almost double the current rate.
Based on the research from John Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, this increase will be majorly affecting older adults.
Expected Hearing Impairment
It is believed that by 2020, 55 percent of the adults affected with the hearing disorder will be around 70 years old and by 2060 that percentage will increase to 67.
By 2060, the number of people affected with severe hearing problems will be more than the people affected with mild hearing problems today.
Based on the reports shared by the National Academics of Science, Engineering and Medicine, around 67 percent and 86 percent of the people who would benefit from a hearing aid never get one.
According to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), insurers are required to provide coverage for the ear examination only and not the cost of the hearing aids.
Hearing Aids Too Costly?
The price of a hearing aid may vary from $1,200 to $3,500 per piece. Around 80 percent of people require two hearing machines, which in turn needs to be changed every three to five years.
Adele Goman, the lead researcher of the study from the Hopkin's Center on Aging and Health, and her other fellow researchers analyzed future hearing loss based on the data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The researchers opined that to address the problem, new methods that were cost efficient were required.
According to researchers, hearing loss may also cause mental disability, anxiety, depression, thus calling for the need of more enhanced provisions supporting the cause for the masses.
Causes Of Hearing Disorder
Dr. Debara Tucci, of the American Academy of Otolaryngology, expressed that apart from age, over exposure to loud music, noise, may also cause hearing impairment.
As a precautionary step, one must always lower the volume of their headphones when they are listening to music. Loud noises belonging to other objects may also cause these disorders and care must be taken to ensure that the ears are protected from such noises.
Dr.Tucci, further advised every individual who is aged 55 to 60 years to go for hearing tests, so that any issues can be diagnosed at the earliest before it reaches severe levels.
The study has been published in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
