Millions of years ago, the world was quite a bit different. The long-necked Diplacusis wandered this volcano-laden landscape. Thanks to its really long neck and tail, Diplacusis was so big that it was afraid of no predator.
Actually, the long-necked dinosaur from the Jurassic Period is known as Diplodocus. Diplacusis is a hearing condition that causes you to hear two sounds at the same time.
Diplacusis is an affliction which can be challenging and confusing causing difficulty communicating.
Perhaps you’ve been hearing some strange things
Usually, we think of hearing loss as our hearing getting muted or quiet over time. According to this idea, over time, we just hear less and less. But in some cases, hearing loss can manifest in some unusual ways. One of the most interesting (or, possibly, frustrating) such presentations is a condition called diplacusis.
What is diplacusis?
So, what’s diplacusis? The meaning of the medical term diplacusis is basically “double hearing”. Typically, your brain takes signals from your right ear and signals from the left ear and combines them harmoniously into one sound. This combined sound is what you hear. Your eyes are doing the same thing. You will see slightly different images if you put your hand over each eye one at a time. Usually, with your ears, you won’t even notice it.
When your brain can’t successfully integrate the two sounds from your ears because they are too different, you have this condition of diplacusis. You can develop diplacusis because of the hearing loss in one ear (called monaural diplacusis) or both ears (binaural diplacusis).
Diplacusis comes in two kinds
Different people are impacted in different ways by diplacuses. Usually, though, people will experience one of the following two types of diplacusis:
- Diplacusis echoica: This occurs when the pitch is nearly the same from ear to ear, but because of your hearing loss, the timing is all wonky. Artifacts similar to echoes can be the result. This can also cause challenges when it comes to understanding speech.
- Diplacusis dysharmonica: When the pitch of the right and left ear are off it’s a sign of this form of diplacusis. So when your grandkids speak with you, the pitch of their voice will sound distorted. One side may sound high-pitched and the other low-pitched. Those sounds can be hard to understand as a result.
Diplacusis symptoms
Here are a few symptoms of diplacusis:
- Phantom echoes
- Hearing that seems off (in timing).
- Off pitch hearing
The condition of double vision could be a useful comparison: Yes, it can develop some symptoms on its own, but it’s usually itself a symptom of something else. (It’s the effect, essentially, not the cause.) Diplacusis, in these cases, is probably a symptom of hearing loss. So your best strategy would be to Schedule an appointment with us for a hearing exam.
What are the causes diplacusis?
The causes of diplacusis line up quite well, in a general sense, with the causes of hearing loss. But there are a few specific reasons why you might develop diplacusis:
- Noise-induced damage to your ears: If you’ve experienced enough loud sounds to damage your hearing, it’s feasible that the same damage has resulted in hearing loss, and consequently, diplacusis.
- Earwax: Your hearing can be impacted by an earwax obstruction. Whether that earwax causes a partial or complete obstruction, it can lead to diplacusis.
- An infection: Ear infections, sinus infections, or even normal allergies can cause your ear canal to become inflamed. This swelling, while a natural response, can effect the way sound travels through your inner ear and to your brain.
- A tumor: Diplacusis can, in rare cases, be caused by a tumor inside of your ear canal. But remain calm! In most instances they’re benign. But you still should consult with us about it.
Obviously, diplacusis and hearing loss have many of the same common causes. This means that if you have diplacusis, it’s likely that something is interfering with your ability to hear. So you should absolutely come in and talk to us.
How is diplacusis treated?
Depending on the main cause, there are several possible treatments. If you have a blockage, treating your diplacusis will focus on clearing it out. But irreversible sensorineural hearing loss is more often the cause. Here are some treatment options if that’s the situation:
- Hearing aids: The right pair of hearing aids can equalize how your ears hear again. Your diplacusis symptoms will gradually fade when you benefit from hearing aids. You’ll want to talk to us about finding the right settings for your hearing aids.
- Cochlear implant: In circumstances where the hearing loss at the root of diplacusis is profound, a cochlear implant may be the only way to get relief from the symptoms.
A hearing test is the first step to getting it all figured out. Think about it like this: whatever kind of hearing loss is the cause of your diplacusis, a hearing exam will be able to identify that (and, to be fair, you may not even recognize it as diplacusis, you may just think stuff sounds weird these days). We have extremely sensitive hearing tests nowadays and any discrepancies with how your ears are hearing the world will be detected.
Life is more fun when you can hear well
Getting the appropriate treatment for your diplacusis, whether that’s a hearing aid or some other treatment option, means you’ll be more capable of participating in your daily life. Talking with others will be easier. Keeping up with your family will be easier.
Which means, you’ll be able to hear your grandchildren tell you all about what a Diplodocus is, and you (hopefully) won’t have any diplacusis to impede you.
If you think you have diplacusis and want to get it checked, call today for an appointment.