According to the American Medical Association, sensorineural (SINSOR-NYURAL) damage is the single largest form of hearing loss, affecting 17 million Americans, including every one in one thousand babies. The condition is progressive and incurable, because sounds that reach the inner ear aren't transmitted to the brain. The causes vary in people according to age. In babies, injury at birth or prenatal diseases of the mother may the cause. In young adults and the middle-aged, the culprits include injury, infections and negative drug interactions. In the elderly, the causes often are prolonged exposure to loud noise or Meniere's (MEN-YARZ) disease, which causes increased fluid pressure in the inner ear. Studies also show that many combat soldiers exposed to sounds of gunfire and explosions now suffer varying degrees of sensorineural (SINSOR-NYURAL) hearing loss. Treatment of this condition is limited to hearing aids, because the structures of the effected area – the inner ear – are too delicate for surgery. But people with sensorineural (SINSOR-NYURAL) hearing loss can lead productive lives.
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