As we age there a lot of changes in both the ear and in the brain that can impact the way we hear. The auditory system is made up of the outer ear, the middle ear, the inner ear and the brain. Age-related changes can occur in each but most of the changes take place in the inner ear and brain. The inner ear contains hair cells that are susceptible to damage as we age, particularly affecting how we hear high-pitched sounds. In the brain, neural slowing occurs that can be attributed to cellular changes in neurons, which transmit and process information. A combination of changes in the inner ear and brain cause age-related hearing loss.
The normal aging process also affects such skills as selective attention, short-term memory, processing speed, reaction time and sensitivity to soft sounds. Many of these help us to carry on conversations, to localize sound and aid in the ability to hear in noisy settings. As seniors these tasks aren’t preformed as efficiently as younger adult brains. As a result, there is more difficulty organizing sound into meaningful information. Age-related changes in the auditory system reflect the importance of regular hearing tests for seniors.