Single-Sided Deafness

SSD can be caused by a variety of factors. One of the most common causes is acoustic neuroma, a benign, slow-growing tumor that can push against the auditory nerve and affect the ability to hear properly in one ear. Sudden deafness – a rapid onset of hearing loss that occurs with little or no warning, often following a viral infection – is another condition commonly associated with SSD. Patients may fall victim to sudden deafness as a result of an inflammation in the cochlea that causes permanent damage to the hair cells responsible for hearing.

Additional causes of SSD include trauma to the head, genetic disorders, Meniere’s disease, labyrinthitis, microtia, mastoiditis, and even common childhood diseases such as measles and bumps.

Patients with SSD find it difficult to understand speech in the presence of background noise especially problematic and have great difficulty localizing sound (recognizing the location or origin of a sound source). Sound localization depends on subtle hearing cues from two ears; removing one from the equation confuses the brain. Other symptoms might include anxiety, stress, social isolation, dizziness, difficulty paying attention, and speaking loudly.