Glue ear is a condition where the middle ear fills up with a glue-like fluid. It is caused by a blockage of the tiny ‘Eustachian tubes’. It is usually treated by antibiotics prescribed by your doctor.
See also Glue Ear.
No. Even children can have a more permanent type of hearing loss where the hearing organ or hearing nerve is affected rather than the middle ear. This type of loss can occur with glue ear. So if you are concerned about your child′s hearing, it is important to get an audiologist to check.
If a permanent hearing loss occurs with glue ear, the effect of the hearing loss is much greater than if glue ear alone is present. While glue ear is usually treated medically, people with a more permanent (sensorineural) loss tend to have assistance through hearing aids.
To find an audiologist, visit the New Zealand Audiological Society′s website.
For a start, try our Test Your Child’s Hearing guide. Then check with your doctor.
Talk to your child′s teacher, your local family doctor or arrange a hearing test through a Public Health Nurse (this can be arranged through the school).
See also Children’s Hearing in the Classroom.
Hearing testing is provided free of charge by organisations like Life Unlimited, Hearing Therapy Services and the Hearing Association.
Find contact details for these organisations in our A-Z Directory.
Also try our Test Your Hearing quiz to help you decide if you need further testing.
Tinnitus is the name given to sounds in the head, when no physical sound is actually there. Although tinnitus is often associated with hearing loss, it is also experienced by people with normal hearing.
See also Tinnitus.
In all hearing aids, sound enters a hearing aid through a tiny microphone. The sound is then processed, amplified and delivered via a receiver (loudspeaker) to your ear canal.
See also Hearing Aids.
Depending on your circumstances, funding is sometimes available. We suggest you try your local government support agencies such as Work and Income NZ, which are listed in the white pages of the phone book.
See also Funding Options for Hearing Aids
A cochlear implant is an electronic device which can bypass damaged ear parts and restore hearing for some significantly deaf or hearing impaired people. New Zealand’s first cochlear implant operation was performed in 1986.
See also Cochlear Implants.
See New Zealand Sign Language.
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