Could Hearing Loss be in Your Genes?

Undoubtedly illness and injury can cause hearing loss, but can genetics also play a role? Yes. Hearing loss can be genetic. In fact, industry professionals agree that most hearing loss is due to some form of genetic irregularity. On top of that, hearing loss is considered the most common birth defect in the developed world.

DNA, genes and inheritance. Our is DNA made up of genes, which behave like tiny pieces of code that, when set in a specific combination, cause all of us to look and function the way we do. Hearing is a complex body function that is known to involve at least 100 distinct genes. If any of these genes are modified or absent from the DNA, hearing loss is frequently the outcome. Parental genes are passed to children, so any abnormal gene sequences which cause hearing loss are handed down.

Different varieties of genetic hearing loss. Some types of hereditary hearing loss can visibly impact the outer ear, while other forms just affect hearing in the inner ear. The hearing loss can be sensorineural, conductive or mixed. Besides that, some genes may cause hearing loss before a child learns to speak (prelingual hearing loss), and other genes cause hearing impairments that appear after speech is learned (postlingual hearing loss). Usher syndrome affects over fifty percent of the deaf-blind population, making it one of the most widespread causes of hearing loss. Another prevalent hereditary condition is Waardenburg syndrome, a disorder in which hearing loss happens in the inner ear but external effects such as light skin, light eyes and a white flash of hair may be also be observed.

The good news about genetic hearing losses. Fortunately, hearing loss isn’t automatically passed from parent to child. The genes that cause hearing loss are typically recessive and therefore often don’t result in any outward symptoms because the child has received a normal copy from the other parent. It is not unusual for the children of hearing impaired parents to have normal hearing. Since there are hundreds of genes involved in hearing, it is more likely than not that the parental hearing losses don’t share the same cause. Genetic testing is available for families who suspect hearing loss is in their genes.