Potential New Breakthroughs in Treating Hearing Loss?

People in Calgary who are suffering from acute sudden hearing loss may soon have hope of treating it thanks to a new substance being investigated by a team in Europe.

Acute sudden hearing loss is when you experience a sudden and significant loss in hearing over the course of a short period of time, usually around 72 hours. It usually only affects one ear.

Recently, a research team in Vienna has been investigating a new substance that may offer some hope for an effective treatment of this kind of hearing loss. In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at this new substance and what it may mean for you.

What is This Substance?

Hearing loss is one of the most common forms of sensory deficit in the modern world. Management of hearing loss typically is done with hearing aids or cochlear implants if the hearing loss is severe enough. Although hearing aids and cochlear implants can help, they do not restore hearing.

Preserving any remaining “natural” hearing is important as it plays a key part in speech comprehension and general hearing perception. That’s where this study comes in. The substance that has been studied by the research team at the Medical University of Vienna is called AC102.

While the study is still ongoing, preclinical trials may represent a massive advancement in the treatment of acute hearing disorders. The latest results were published in a scientific journal called “Cell Death & Disease”.

First author Michael Nieratschker reports that “In our study, we have now been able to show that the residual hearing of animals that were administered AC102 once increasingly recovered in contrast to untreated animals,”

How Does It Help?

One of the things that plays a part in hearing loss is inflammation and cell damage. AC102 is being investigated in this context. It has been shown to have an anti-inflammatory effect, protecting hair cells and auditory nerves from dying. The results of the study show that AC102 may be effective in helping reduce acute hearing loss.

Phase I trials, which are meant to determine if AC102 is safe for use, have also been completed. The next step is to conduct Phase II trials, which are already underway in several European centres. These trials are to confirm the efficacy of the substance in patients.

It may not be long before we have an effective way to treat hearing loss for patients in Calgary and throughout the world.

What to do if you experience sudden hearing loss

If you experience a sudden hearing loss, it is important to see your family physician and a Soundwave Hearing Care audiologist for a comprehensive hearing evaluation within the first 24 to 48 hours, if possible. Your family doctor and your audiologist will be able to help with the next steps to get access to care that may be able to slow or reverse the sudden hearing loss.

Visit Soundwave Hearing Care Today

If you feel like you’re having more difficulty hearing people than you used to, you might be suffering from hearing loss. At Soundwave Hearing Care in Calgary, we care about your hearing. We offer hearing tests that can help to identify the cause of your hearing loss and provide advice on treating it or living with your limited hearing.

We perform a complete evaluation to fully understand how the hearing loss is affecting your cognitive and communicative function. Contact us today to book your appointment. We look forward to hearing from you.