The Vision and Hearing Connection

PHSI home Hearing Info Vision and Hearing Connection

Connecting Vision and Hearing Loss

Hearing and vision are the two most important senses. Critical data is transmitted every waking moment to the visual cortex and auditory cortex in the brain, and these 2 sets of inputs synthesize to give us our perception of the world around us. Doesn’t it make sense to evaluate these two senses and provide treatment options in one location? While there are many causes of hearing loss, AGE and NOISE EXPOSURE are the two most common causes. The normal aging process begins to take its toll around age 55, but exposure to loud noises (like music and industrial noise) may cause problems to occur much earlier in life. Vision loss and hearing loss often occur in the same people, sometimes linked by a specific disease and other times purely because both problems affect us as we get older. The important thing is that both of these key senses are critical to daily life, and while the loss of either can be debilitating, the loss of BOTH will affect every minute of every day in some way. For about 90% of all cases of hearing loss, hearing aids or hearing instruments of some kind are the best available treatment option.

Hearing loss and vision loss both begin to deteriorate around the age of 55; therefore patients with visual impairments may soon experience similar hearing problems as well. In a recent scientific study of 2,400 people, with an average age of 70, researchers found a significant link between vision loss and hearing loss. Those with vision loss tended to also have hearing impairments and vice versa. The study suggests that hearing loss and vision loss could share common risk factors. In addition, the study concluded that older persons with vision loss were more likely to have trouble hearing and need a hearing device.

Evaluate Vision and Hearing Together

Both vision and hearing begin to decline as we age and evaluating both simultaneously can help to identify problems and treatment options early. Millions of older Americans have hearing loss and need hearing testing to identify the type and extent of the loss. The most common option for most patients to identify and address hearing problems has generally been a retail hearing aid store, but with PHSI Hearing Programs, we bring testing and hearing aid consultation services out of the commercial setting and into the offices of your trusted eye physician. State-of-the-art testing equipment and licensed clinical staff are part of every PHSI Hearing Program. Top-tier hearing instruments from a selection of the finest manufacturers in the world are available onsite for immediate fitting when appropriate. If needed, your hearing professional can refer you to an ENT specialist for further consultation. But for about 9 of every 10 patients we evaluate, appropriate hearing instruments will be available right in your eye doctor’s office. Now you can fulfill your eyeglasses, contacts, and hearing instrument needs in one convenient location and with the clinical team you already know and trust.