Do you spend much time thinking about your nervous system? Probably not all that regularly. Ordinarily, you wouldn’t have to worry about how your neurons are communicating messages to the nerves in your body. But when those nerves begin to misfire – that is when something goes wrong – you tend to pay a lot more attention to your nervous system.
One specific disease known as Charot-Marie-Tooth Disease that generally affects the extremities can also have a pretty wide-scale impact on the entire nervous system. high-frequency hearing loss can also be triggered by CMT according to some evidence.
What Is Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease?
Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease is a set of inherited disorders. The protective sheathing surrounding the nerves malfunction due to a genetic condition.
This means that the impulses sent from your brain to those nerves (and from those nerves back to your brain) don’t progress all that well. Functionally, this can cause both a loss in motor function and a loss of sensation.
A combination of genetic elements commonly leads to the expression of symptoms, so CMT can be present in several varieties. Symptoms of CMT usually begin in the feet and work their way up to the arms. And, strangely, among those who have CMT, there is a higher rate of occurrence of high-frequency hearing loss.
The Cochlear Nerve: A Link Between CMT and Loss of Hearing
The connection between CMT and loss of hearing has always been colloquially recognized (that is, everyone knows somebody who has a tells about it – at least inside of the CMT community). And it was tough to recognize the link between loss of sensation in the legs and problems with the ears.
The connection was firmly established by a scientific study just recently when a group of researchers evaluated 79 people with CMT at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
The results were quite conclusive. Low to moderate frequencies were heard nearly perfectly by those with CMT. But high-frequency sounds (in the moderate region in particular) were easily heard by all of the participants. high-frequency hearing loss, according to this study, is likely to be associated with CMT.
What is The Cause of Hearing Loss And How Can it be Treated?
The link between high-frequency loss of hearing and CMT could, at first, seem puzzling. Like every other part of your body relies on properly functioning nerves. That also goes for your ears.
The theory is, CMT impacts the cochlear nerve so noises in the high-frequency range aren’t able to be interpreted. Some sounds, including some voices, will be difficult to hear. In particular, make out voices in crowded and noisy rooms can be a real obstacle.
Hearing aids are commonly used to manage this type of hearing loss. There’s no recognized cure for CMT. Modern hearing aids can isolate the precise frequencies to boost which can give appreciable help in fighting high-frequency hearing loss. Most modern hearing aids can also perform well in noisy environments.
Hearing Loss Can Have A Number of Causes
Beyond the unconfirmed hypothesis, it’s still uncertain what the relationship between CMT and high-frequency hearing loss. But hearing aid tech provides a clear treatment for the symptoms of that hearing loss. So scheduling an appointment to get fitted for hearing aids will be a smart decision for individuals who suffer from CMT.
There are a variety of causes for hearing loss symptoms. Often, it’s an issue of loud noise resulting in injury to the ears. In other situations, hearing loss might be the consequence of a blockage. It also looks as if CMT is another possible cause.