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How Common is Hearing Loss
Deafness is America's leading disability affecting 28 million people of all ages. (*NIDOCD)
Two million Americans are completely deaf. (*NOHR)
Seventy-five percent of people with hearing loss don't seek treatment because of misinformation, fear or simple vanity.
(*NOHR)
Five million Americans wear hearing aids. Fifteen million other people who have tried to wear hearing aids have been unable to benefit from them. Twenty million then need better hearing aids. (*NOHR)
INFANTS AND CHILDREN
- Hearing loss is America's number one birth defect. (*WCHH)
- At least 1 million children are deaf or have a communication disorder. (*NIDOCD)
- One of every 1,000 infants is born deaf. (*NIDOCD) Half of these cases are thought to be genetic. (*NOHR)
- Three to four of every 1,000 infants have significant hearing impairment. (*NICOCD)
- The average age of diagnosis of hearing loss is close to age 3. (*NICOCD)
- 19,000 children under the age of 18 have a cochlear implant, out of an eligible population of 45,000 and
growing. (*CHHCT)
BABY BOOMERS
- Noise-induced hearing loss is growing among baby boomers. Of the more than 75 million Americans born
between 1945 and 1964, 20.4% or 16 million suffer some degree of hearing loss. (NCHS)
SENIORS
- Age-related hearing loss affects 1 in 3 Americans over 65, nearly 1 in every 2 Americans over 75, and 4 out of 5 over the age of 85 impairing communication & social skills. (*AMA)
Statistic sources:
- NIDOCD: National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders, The National Institutes of Health
- NOHR: National Organization for Hearing Research Foundation
- CHHCT: Congressional Hearing Health Caucus Transcript, 4/30/03
- WCHH: World Council on Hearing Health
- NCHS: National Health Interview Survey by the National Center for Health Statistics
- AMA: American Medical Association
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