Download Conductive Hearing Loss – temporary/ short-term

Conductive Hearing Loss – temporary/ short-term
1. What is glue ear?
For ears to work properly the middle ear needs to be kept full of
air. The eustachian tube, which usually does this, runs from the
middle ear to the back of the throat. In children this tube is not as
vertical and wide as it will be when they get older and as a result
doesn’t work as well. If the eustachian tube becomes blocked, air
cannot enter the middle ear. When this happens, the cells lining
the middle ear begin to produce fluid. This can be like a runny
liquid which can get thicker as it fills the middle ear.
With fluid blocking the middle ear, it becomes harder for sound
to pass through to the inner ear. This can make quieter sounds
difficult to hear. It can be like listening to the world with both
fingers stuck in your ears. It’s hard work, try it for yourself! If your
child has glue ear they can’t always hear everything that you say,
so it’s no wonder they’re tired and irritable, or just want to be left
on their own.
2. Facts about conductive hearing loss and glue ear.

Glue Ear may simply clear up particularly if it is associated with a heavy
cold.

Glue Ear may also fluctuate and can be present one day and not the next.

This can lead to permanent conductive hearing problems in later
childhood.

In Tower Hamlets the incidence of Glue Ear is higher than the national
average. Probable causes: damp housing conditions, passive smoking,
ear infections, frequent colds. Also the effect of continually sucking on
baby bottles by young children causing air locks in the Eustachian tube.

The attendance rate at the Audiological clinic and ENT clinic for Tower
Hamlets children/pupil’s is also low leading to many children having glue
ear or conductive hearing loss being untreated.
3. Educational implications of a conductive hearing loss and glue ear:

The teacher needs to be aware that this type of hearing loss fluctuates and
so the pupil’s listening ability may vary from day to day.

Normal speech will be heard but at a quieter level and therefore when
background noise is present the pupil will have difficulty hearing the
speaker and may become easily distracted.

If English is a second language or the pupil has additional learning needs
it is likely to have a more severe effect as it will be more difficult to learn
English in poor listening conditions AND with reduced or fluctuating
hearing.

Due to time spent with reduced hearing and/or the time spent away from
school as a result of associated ear infections, children with more
persistent or recurrent bouts of glue ear are at risk of social and
developmental problems. These include delayed language, difficulties in
learning to read, gaps in general knowledge and reasoning ability as well
as social and behavioural problems.

How past history of a hearing loss can affect present functioning.
Full access to language will have been limited in different ways which can
result in effect’s on a pupil’s understanding of vocabulary, structures,
figurative language, idioms and general concepts. This means that in the
best listening conditions a pupil may not understand what s/he is hearing
ad assumptions cannot be made about his/her background knowledge.
s/he may not have the same conceptual awareness to draw from as
his/her hearing peers.
Sources of above information:
www.ndcs.org
www.rnid.org.uk
www.deafnessresearch.uk