How Hearing Works
As a key sensory element, your hearing offers more than just the basic ability to hear noises around you.
As part of that ability to hear, how well your hearing performs allows you not just to hear, but to physically place the sounds within your immediate environment and beyond. In short, providing you have no hearing dificulties which affect how much sound reaches each eardrum, and is later processed by your brain, you actually hear in 3D.
Another vital function of your hearing is to help you remain upright when you need to be. Your sense of balance is all controlled by your inner ear. If you, or someone you know, has ever suffered from vertigo or disequilibrium, you will know how debilitating it can be.
How The Ear Works
The Outer Ear
The Pinna (Auricle) captures sound waves and directs them into the ear canal.
The ear canal then carries sound waves to the eardrum.
The Middle Ear
The eardrum (Tympanic Membrane) vibrates when sound waves hit it, and these vibrations are passed to the ossicles.
The ossicles are the three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that amplify the vibrations passed from the eardrum.
The Inner Ear
The cochlea is a spiral-shaped organ that converts the amplified vibrations into electrical signals.
The hair cells in the cochlea help in this conversion process, and send messages to the auditory nerve. It is the auditory nerve that transmits the final “sounds” to your brain. Damage to these hair cells can be a major contributory factor in hearing loss.
The Outer Ear
The Pinna (Auricle) captures sound waves and directs them into the ear canal.
The ear canal then carries sound waves to the eardrum.
The Middle Ear
The eardrum (Tympanic Membrane) vibrates when sound waves hit it, and these vibrations are passed to the ossicles.
The ossicles are the three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that amplify the vibrations passed from the eardrum.
The Inner Ear
The cochlea is a spiral-shaped organ that converts the amplified vibrations into electrical signals.
The hair cells in the cochlea help in this conversion process, and send messages to the auditory nerve. It is the auditory nerve that transmits the final “sounds” to your brain. Damage to these hair cells can be a major contributory factor in hearing loss.
Signs You May Have Hearing Loss
- Difficulty understanding speech, especially in noisy environments
- Frequently asking people to repeat themselves
- Needing to turn up the volume on the TV or radio
- Your family and friends show concern about you
Request a Callback
If you’re concerned about your hearing or a loved one’s hearing, it can be overwhelming and confusing. With so much conflicting information and advice online, you need a voice that you can trust.
The good new is that with over 75 years of experience helping Iowans to achieve better hearing, our team of experts are on hand to help.
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