Hearing loss - you are not alone
It is estimated that 120 000 people in the adult population of Sweden have severe or very severe hearing loss. Nearly 500,000 people have moderate hearing loss and 1.3 million people have mild hearing loss. In the 80+ age group, almost everyone has some degree of hearing loss. In total, it is estimated that around 570,000 adults could benefit from hearing aids. More than 270 000 adults are estimated to have a hearing aid. Of these, just over half say they use their hearing aid regularly. This could mean that only one in four of those who would need a hearing aid have a hearing aid that they use regularly. This could be due to several reasons. Hearing loss develops slowly over time, which means that it can become quite severe before the person with the hearing loss, or those around them, become aware of it.
The amount of hearing aid use can depend on many factors: the degree of hearing loss, how long the hearing loss has been present, and whether you get enough benefit from a hearing aid in the situations where you have the most trouble hearing. Another aspect is that hearing with a hearing aid can improve after a period of use and habituation.
In mild to moderate hearing loss, the problem is mainly hearing in conversations with several participants. A hearing aid often provides only limited help. In the case of moderate to severe hearing loss, the hearing aid helps mainly in conversations between two people, especially in a quiet environment. The problems of hearing loss are first felt in the form of difficulty in participating in conversations at meetings, social gatherings, etc., and eventually develop into difficulties in conversations in a quiet environment as well. As a result, many people who get hearing aids for the first time benefit less from them than they will later in life when their hearing loss becomes more profound.
Percentage with hearing loss
| Age | 65dB HL+ | 40–64 dB HL | 20–39 dB HL | Total |
| 18–30 | 0,0 | 0,2 | 2,4 | 2,6% |
| 31–40 | 0,7 | 0,4 | 4,5 | 5,6% |
| 41–50 | 0,3 | 2,0 | 11,2 | 13,5% |
| 51–60 | 0,9 | 4,7 | 23,2 | 28,8% |
| 61–70 | 2,3 | 8,4 | 40,1 | 50,8% |
| 71–80 | 4,0 | 25,7 | 44,3 | 74,0% |
| 81 + | 13,0 | 40,9 | 39,8 | 93,7% |
| All 18 years and over | 1,6 | 6,8 | 18,3 | 26,8% |
What are the symptoms of hearing loss?
It's common for hearing loss to be accompanied by tinnitus, which is when you hear a buzzing or beeping sound. A common symptom of hearing loss is that other people around you are paying attention to you, for example, they may notice that you have a loud TV or you may ask them what they said. Other common symptoms are:
- You feel that others speak vaguely or unclearly
- You find it hard to hear what someone is saying when others are talking at the same time
- You find it hard to hear what someone is saying if it's noisy
- You feel that you have a plug in your ear
- You may have difficulty hearing bright sounds, such as insects and birds