Hearing loss is on the increase due to an ageing population, the use of personal listening devices, smoking, and poor cardiovascular health. It affects almost 9 million people in the UK and an estimated 55 million Americans. This book explains types and degrees of hearing loss, treatments and therapies, and how to live with it. Topics include: * The auditory system - anatomy and mechanisms of the ear * Conditions such as otosclerosis, Meniere's disease, * Psychosocial aspects of hearing loss, eg anxiety and stress * Occupational implications * Treatments, including auditory training, hearing aids and hearing implants * Assistive listening devices * Adjusting and coping * The future, including stem cell treatments and otoprotectants * Helping other people with hearing loss

Author Biography

Don McFerran is a consultant surgeon in ENT at Colchester Hospital University. Lucy Handscomb is director of the hearing therapy service at St Mary's Hospital, London. Cherilee Rutherford is a lecturer in auditory rehabilitation at UCL Ear Institute.