Losing one’s hearing is difficult. It can moderately to severely affect a person for their entire life. When loss of normal hearing is caused by the negligence or wrongdoing of another, you may be entitled to compensation, with the help of hearing loss claims workers compensation lawyers in Wisconsin. A person who is not able to hear as well as someone with normal hearing – hearing thresholds of 25 dB or better in both ears – is said to have hearing loss. Hearing loss may be mild, moderate, severe, or profound. It can affect one ear or both ears and leads to difficulty in hearing conversational speech or loud sounds. [2]
Hard of hearing – refers to people with hearing loss ranging from mild to severe. People who are hard of hearing usually communicate through spoken language and can benefit from hearing aids, cochlear implants, and other assistive devices as well as captioning. People with more significant hearing losses may benefit from cochlear implants. [1]
Deaf people mostly have profound hearing loss, which implies very little or no hearing. They often use sign language for communication.
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Table of contents
Key facts about hearing loss
- Around 466 million people worldwide have disabling hearing loss, and 34 million of these are children.
- It is estimated that by 2050 over 900 million people will have disabling hearing loss.
- Hearing loss may result from genetic causes, complications at birth, certain infectious diseases, chronic ear infections, the use of particular drugs, exposure to excessive noise, and aging.
- 60% of childhood hearing loss is due to preventable causes.
- 1.1 billion young people (aged between 12–35 years) are at risk of hearing loss due to exposure to noise in recreational settings.
- Unaddressed hearing loss poses an annual global cost of US$ 750 billion. Interventions to prevent, identify, and address hearing loss are cost-effective and can bring great benefit to individuals.
- People with hearing loss benefit from early identification, use of hearing aids, cochlear implants, and other assistive devices, captioning and sign language, and other forms of educational and social support.
- Current estimates suggest an 83% gap in hearing aid needs and use, i.e., only 17% of those who could benefit from the use of a hearing aid actually use one.
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What Causes Hearing Loss or Deafness?
1. Loud Noise
Loud sounds and vibrations can injure the eardrum as such that it causes permanent damage.
2. Sustained Decibel Levels
This is found in many work areas with industrial machinery. If the company doesn’t have proper procedures and equipment in place, constant exposure to high decibel levels could cause permanent hearing loss.
3. Ear Drum Injury
During a car accident, particularly a rollover accident, debris flies everywhere, and some of them are sharp. Some of this debris has a chance to damage the inner ear.
4. Cochlear Injury
The cochlea is a spiral structure containing cilia (hair-like structures) in the inner ear that are connected to the auditory nerve. Damage to this sensitive organ can happen during a head injury, a loud noise, or sustained high decibel levels. [3]
5. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
The auditory cortex in the brain can be damaged in car accidents, falling injuries, and other serious blunt injuries that cause damage to the brain.
Continue reading: How Can Hearing Loss Impact Other Injuries? >
How Much Is Your Hearing Loss Claim Worth?
There are times when the loss of hearing may result in a claim. A traumatic brain injury (TBI), hole in the eardrum, and damage to the middle ear can cause hearing loss. For example, a defective product may explode and cause hearing impairment. In this case, the injured individual could file an injury claim against the manufacturer to claim compensation. If a negligent healthcare professional caused a patient to sustain a hearing loss, the injured patient could file a medical malpractice lawsuit.
To file an injury claim with a hearing loss claims workers compensation lawyers in Wisconsin, a person must have sustained a hearing injury through an action they did not take willingly. Sustaining hearing loss after attending a concert, for example, is not a likely cause for an injury claim.
Injured individuals must prove in an injury claim that the person who caused the injury had a duty to act in a reasonable manner to keep others around them safe. Those hurt must prove the other party breached that duty, and that they suffered hearing loss as a result. They must also show the hearing loss has caused them financial harm.
Through an injury claim, injured individuals can receive compensation for economic and non-economic losses.
- Economic losses are those that have an actual dollar value, such as medical bills and lost income.
- Non-economic losses are those that do not have an actual dollar amount, such as pain and suffering.
Permanent disability is also sometimes awarded in cases involving hearing impairment. The amount of compensation awarded depends on the hurt individual’s age and if the permanent damage is partial or total.
Compensation for your deafness or hearing loss will be based on
- Medical costs – Emergency, hospital, and fees.
- Ongoing medical costs – Physical and mental therapy, pharmaceuticals, and speech therapy.
- Loss of income – Lost wages and potential income.
- Pain and suffering – We seek general damages and special damages.
- Lost quality of life – Due to permanent personal injury or other factors.
Continue reading: Compensation Claim for Hearing Loss >