Which term is defined as age-related hearing loss?

Which term is defined as age-related hearing loss?

• A. Nystagmus
• B. Cerumen impaction
• C. Presbycusis
• D. Otosclerosis

Answer: (C)

Age-related hearing loss is called presbycusis. It reflects gradual degeneration of the inner ear structures that convert sound into nerve signals, especially the cochlear hair cells and sometimes the auditory nerve. As people age, high-frequency sounds are the first to become hard to hear, and understanding speech—particularly in noisy settings—can decline. This type of hearing loss is typically bilateral and progressive and falls under sensorineural loss rather than a blockage or a problem in the middle ear. Other options describe different issues: nystagmus is involuntary eye movement, not related to hearing. Cerumen impaction is a buildup of earwax that can block the ear canal and cause conductive hearing loss, not age-related sensorineural loss. Otosclerosis involves abnormal bone growth in the middle ear (often affecting younger adults) and causes conductive hearing loss, not the gradual, age-related pattern seen with presbycusis.

Age-related hearing loss is called presbycusis. It reflects gradual degeneration of the inner ear structures that convert sound into nerve signals, especially the cochlear hair cells and sometimes the auditory nerve. As people age, high-frequency sounds are the first to become hard to hear, and understanding speech—particularly in noisy settings—can decline. This type of hearing loss is typically bilateral and progressive and falls under sensorineural loss rather than a blockage or a problem in the middle ear.

Other options describe different issues: nystagmus is involuntary eye movement, not related to hearing. Cerumen impaction is a buildup of earwax that can block the ear canal and cause conductive hearing loss, not age-related sensorineural loss. Otosclerosis involves abnormal bone growth in the middle ear (often affecting younger adults) and causes conductive hearing loss, not the gradual, age-related pattern seen with presbycusis.