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Though hearing loss has been with us throughout the ages, at present there is no cure. Our best remedies for hearing loss are hearing aids and cochlear implants (devices that bypass the ear entirely, sending electrical energy to the brain via the auditory nerve). Depending on the severity of hearing loss, hearing aids can usually augment hearing ability to near-normal. Cochlear implants, a much more radical and invasive treatment for cases where the ear is completely non-functional, can allow the wearer to pick up some speech and improve awareness of surrounding sounds. While neither technology can fairly be called a “cure” for hearing loss, they are the contemporary vanguard of a long history of treatments for hearing loss.
Ear Trumpets
The precursor to the hearing aid was the “ear trumpet.” Basically a horn, the user inserted the small end into the ear canal while the larger end extended out in front of them to mechanically help funnel sound into the ear. While somewhat helpful for those with mild to moderate hearing loss, the ear trumpet has understandably been superseded in most of the world by the hearing aid.
Modern hearing aids have come a long way from the bulky devices of yore. Today’s hearing aids fit snugly in the ear canal and can be nearly invisible. Not only is their profile slimmer, but they can help distinguish human speech from background noise, integrate with Bluetooth and other technologies, and even help alleviate tinnitus (that annoying ringing in the ears). But while hearing aids are an ever-evolving and useful remedy for the hard-of-hearing, they are not a cure for hearing loss.
But throughout history, charlatans and snake oil salesmen have offered “cures” for hearing loss. Some are more ghastly than others, but they all have one thing in common: they don’t work.
Artificial Eardrums
Artificial eardrums have a storied, checkered, confusing history. In recent times, bio fabricators have managed to create a useful artificial eardrum to replace an impossibly damaged one. This is a contemporary recurrence of a technology that was abandoned in the early 20th century, after going through a phase of incredible popularity as a fake.
Artificial eardrums probably originated as a self-discovered remedy by people whose eardrums had ruptured. The membrane from the inside of an egg might be used; everything from pieces of tin to India rubber to gutta percha were employed as surrogate eardrums. These would be fixed in the ear canal using saliva, water, petroleum jelly or glycerin. Ordinarily, the wearer would remove them at night, much like contact lenses.
While useful only in the case of a ruptured eardrum, around the turn of the century, dishonest peddlers began hawking them as a universal cure for deafness. Popularity of this fake cure peaked in the years between 1900 and 1920, with magazine ads offering them mail order for $5 until the Food and Drug Administration came into being and put a stop to it.
Blistering
In the Georgian era, roughly 1715 – 1825, pus was thought to be a toxic agent (the cause of the ailment; not a byproduct of the immune system’s response to it). The practice of “blistering” involved the application of a caustic plaster to the ear canal. This damaged the skin, which in turn generated pus, and when the pus emerged it was assumed that this was the cause of the hearing loss escaping the body. There is no valid medical use for the practice of blistering.
Galvanism
Another general practice for “healing” various ailments in the body, galvanism gained popularity in the 1800s. In short, it is the practice of passing an electric current through the troubled part of the body. Unfortunately, electrocuting your ears will not cure your hearing loss. This was attempted on Beethoven, who suffered a number of quack treatments that likely contributed to the ultimate severity of his hearing loss.
Gene Treatments for Hearing Loss
Today, our most hopeful possibilities for a cure come in the form of genetic drug treatments. The Stanford Initiative to Cure Hearing Loss notes that nearly all hearing loss is genetic at its root. While studies have been conducted with promising results, we are a long way from being able to take a pill and have our hearing restored. The best thing to do if you have hearing loss is to schedule a hearing test and follow the recommended treatment guidelines of a hearing healthcare professional.