Other types of deafness

Unilateral deafness

Unilateral deafness affects only one ear. The deafness can range from mild to a complete loss of hearing (profound). Unilateral deafness particularly affects the child’s ability to work out which direction sounds are coming from (localisation) and to hear speech clearly in background noise. The majority of children with unilateral deafness manage well in a hearing environment, however there are situations where they may find it difficult to hear well enough, particularly in classrooms and when outside. Children with unilateral deafness have particular safety considerations e.g. when crossing the road. There are approximately 23,300 – 27,000 children aged 0 -18 years with a unilateral or mild hearing loss in the UK.

Temporary deafness

The most common cause of temporary deafness is a middle ear condition known as otitis media with effusion (OME) or “glue ear”. This is caused by a build up of fluid in the middle ear that prevents sounds passing to the inner ear efficiently. An estimated 1 million 0-8 year olds experience temporary deafness caused by this condition. That is, one in five children in the UK. The majority of children with glue ear will improve without the need for treatment or intervention and almost all children grow out of the condition. OME can be relieved with a surgical procedure to drain the fluid and insert temporary ‘grommets’ in the eardrum. However, a smaller proportion of children experience persistent long term glue ear and may be unsuitable for surgery. Some of these children use hearing aids. Particular groups of children may suffer with glue ear for many years e.g. children with Down’s syndrome and children with cleft palate.