HEAR BETTER CENTER

World Health Organisation Report On hearing Impairment 2014

WHO report on deafness and hearing loss is shocking. This is according to the WHO updated report dating February 2014

                    Key facts

• 360 million people worldwide have disabling hearing loss1.
• Hearing loss may be inherited, caused by maternal rubella or complications at birth, certain infectious diseases such as meningitis, chronic ear infections, use of ototoxic drugs, exposure to excessive noise and ageing.
• Half of all cases of hearing loss are avoidable through primary prevention.
• People with hearing loss can benefit from devices such as hearing aids, assistive devices and cochlear implants, and from captioning, sign language training, educational and social support.
• Current production of hearing aids meets less than 10% of global need.
• WHO is assisting countries in developing programmes for primary ear and hearing care that are integrated into the primary health-care system of the country.

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Over 5% of the world’s population – 360 million people – has disabling hearing loss (328 million adults and 32 million children). Disabling hearing loss refers to hearing loss greater than 40dB in the better hearing ear in adults and a hearing loss greater than 30dB in the better hearing ear in children. The majority of these people live in low- and middle-income countries.

Approximately one-third of people over 65 years of age are affected by disabling hearing loss. The prevalence in this age group is greatest in South Asia, Asia Pacific and sub-Saharan Africa.

Shocking indeed, 360 million people is approximately the population of atleast ten African countries. Imagine an entire population from ten countries with hearing problems. That is how prevalent hearing loss is.