One of the most unusual symptoms of COVID-19 is that it can temporarily dampen your senses of taste and smell. Indeed, loss of smell is often one of the first signs of infection. But your sense of smell and taste aren’t the only sense affected by COVID-19. New studies are uncovering an unusual, but longer-term issue: irreversible sensorineural hearing loss.
How is Hearing Loss Brought on by COVID-19?
Scientists are learning more about COVID-19 every single day. But there’s still a great deal we don’t understand. 2019 is when the virus was first discovered. Normally, scientists work for years, if not decades, to fully describe a new pathogen. And COVIC-19 can be especially difficult because it effects different people in different ways.
You might experience a wide variety of symptoms. And one of those symptoms is lasting hearing loss. Why this occurs is still not known. The virus could be triggering a reaction known as “cellular stress”. According to this theory, COVID places so much stress on your body that certain cells (such as those responsible for hearing) start to break down. But your body’s own immune response could also be responsible for this type of hearing loss. Considerable damage can be done to your body when your immune system overcompensates.
Also, when other COVID symptoms are almost gone, this hearing loss can still become apparent. Again, we aren’t really sure why this takes place. We are also clueless why it’s more or less likely to occur.
Is There Any Treatment For This Kind of Hearing Loss?
Irreversible sensorineural hearing loss is possible as a result of COVID-19. There might be a few treatment possibilities depending on specific variables. Actually, researchers have noticed already that steroid treatments seem to help protect your hearing, particularly if you undergo early treatment. If you do experience sudden loss of hearing, you need to talk to a doctor.
Either way, once you’ve totally recovered from your COVID-19 experience, it may be a smart move to visit us and undergo a hearing examination.
But it’s worth pointing out that there are a few qualifiers to all of this. Hearing loss, first off, is not a very common COVID symptom. We don’t know yet how common this particular symptom is yet. But as scientists discover more about COVID-19 the science will adjust.
Can COVID Related Hearing Loss be Prevented?
If you have sudden changes in your hearing and you have COVID-19 get in touch with your doctor and schedule a hearing exam with us. Long-term hearing loss can be lessened by rapid response.
Try to prevent getting sick: Protecting yourself from getting COVID-19 is the best way to avoid this kind of hearing loss. This means following guidelines when it comes to social gatherings, physical distancing, and wearing a mask.
While this specific symptom is uncommon, it still occurs. And the more insight you have about COVID and hearing loss, the better. If you think you’ve already had hearing damage, it’s probably a wise decision to come in and get checked.
