Is hearing loss due to ear infections permanent in my 4 year old ?

Question

My 4 year old has an ear infection and complains about pain, and that she cannot hear my voice. She keeps saying "huh" and I have to speak louder for her to hear. Is this situation permanent ? Do ear infections cause permanent or temporary hearing loss ? Can anybody share their experiences with their toddlers in regards to hearing and ear infections.

Answer 1

It can be either. My son had multiple ear infections but they always cleared with antibiotics so we didn't worry about tubes. It wasn't until he was 2 and still not saying "mama" that we became concerned. Took him to see an ENT and has his hearing checked out and he did have some loss. They thought it was from fluid trapped in his ear. He didn't have any infection from it, it was just trapped. They put tubes in. They took a lot of fluid out of one ear and the doctor stated my son had a "glue like" fluid in his other ear so that was why he couldn't hear. He was talking so much better in just two weeks. My point of all this is that if your daughter is over her ear infection but she still isn't hearing well have her checked out. Ear infections have also been known to damage the little hairs which would mean permanent hearing loss but this is much more rare. Everyone with ear infections has temporary hearing loss because the sounds have to go through a layer of fluid. Hope that was some help!

Answer 2

Generally speaking, one ear infection will not cause hearing loss. Chronic ear infections (ear infections that keep returning) CAN cause permanent hearing loss, so make sure to treat each ear infection quickly! Get in touch with an audiologist and make sure that the infections she's had haven't already caused a permanent loss. If you are concerned about language development for lack of ability to hear, teach her some signs to help her continue to communicate with you...and to save your voice. This will NOT hinder her spoken language abilities, so no worries! :D

Answer 3

Meniere's disease; meningitis and ear infections such as otitis media or interna can cause permanent hearing loss if not addressed to properly and immediately upon occurence. I had otitis media as a child and now have suffered nerve deafness or sensoineural hearing loss. I have a hard time understanding some words. They sound muffled esp if the speaker is not facing me. I tend to talk loud. And I keep asking others to repeat. I get startled easily when somebody come to the room surreptiously.


When fluid forms in the middle ear, the condition is known as "otitis media with effusion." This occurs in a recovering ear infection or when one is about to occur. Fluid can remain in the ear for weeks to many months. When a discharge from the ear persists or repeatedly returns, this is sometimes called chronic middle ear infection. Fluid can remain in the ear up to three weeks following the infection. If not treated, chronic ear infections have potentially serious consequences such as temporary or permanent hearing loss.

How does otitis media affect a child’s hearing?

If you believe your child has a hearing loss, the young patient should be examined by an ear, nose, and throat specialist at the earliest opportunity.


All children with middle ear infection or fluid have some degree of hearing loss. The average hearing loss in ears with fluid is 24 decibels...equivalent to wearing ear plugs. (Twenty-four decibels is about the level of the very softest of whispers.) Thicker fluid can cause much more loss, up to 45 decibels (the range of conversational speech).



Your child may have hearin g loss if he or she is unable to understand certain words and speaks louder than normal. Essentially, a child experiencing hearing loss from middle ear infections will hear muffled sounds and misunderstand speech rather than incur a complete hearing loss.


Even so, the consequences can be significant – the young patient could permanently lose the ability to consistently understand speech in a noisy environment (such as a classroom) leading to a delay in learning important speech and language skills

Answer 4

My nephew had chronic ear infections. After so many of them, they put tubes in. Problem...the tubes kept coming out and when they reinserted them it caused scar tissue to build up so he lost hearing... permanently. One ear infection will not cause permanent loss. temporarily she probably has a lot of gunk in her ear and that is why she can't hear you. Don't try to get it out. Her ped Dr should have a bulb syringe with a suction cup and hose that can evacuate her ears w/out harming them. The pain is from the pressure of the gunk on the eardrum. Try putting a hot washcloth directly behind her ear near the earlobe. That helps loosen anything that can come out easily. You'll see alot of drainage on her pillow after you do this, that's the best indicator that stuff is coming out and making the pain less.

Answer 5

You need to get this treated ASAP before it does cause permanent hearing loss. What are you waiting for? I have been hearing impaired since I was a child because they couldn't get rid of the fluid in my ear no matter what they did including surgery several times. Take you child to the doc tomorrow and get this checked out before it become permanent hearing loss.

Answer 6

My son went through more suffering from birth until seven. At the age of two, his tousles and adenoids were taken out and tubes put into his ears. That was miraculous. However, he still had many problems and at the age four. He was in the deepest stage of depression the doctor had ever seen a child in and this was due to his health. Final diagnosis was sinus problems. After the surgery with the tonsils and tubes, he could hear and started to speak. Get her ears checked and find a good doctor who will be interested in her. Some doctors are absorbed and just do not take the time for true diagnosis. Keep changing doctors until you find one who will make her better, please.