Surgery for conductive hearing loss?

[simkenheights]

My gf had a lot of ear infections when she was a child, and as a result, she has poor hearing in her left ear. I've been doing some research and my best guess is that she has conductive hearing loss caused by a build-up of scar tissue around the ear drum.

Assuming that's the case, what should we do next? The first question I have is whether or not this type of surgery is typically covered by insurance. She has decent insurance, but if this is considered elective surgery of course it wouldn't be covered.

And if she has to pay for it out of pocket, we'd like to have a ballpark figure of how much it would cost. $1000? $3000? $8000? There's not much pt in paying $150 for an appt w/ a doctor only to find out that she can't afford the surgery anyway.

Has anyone had experience w/ this type of surgery, like how long it takes, if it's painful, what the success rate is, etc? Thanx!

[Admin]

I am not a physician nor a surgeon, so please do not take any of the following as medical advice:

I have had several patients with conductive hearing losses caused by chronic ear infections. The problem can be with the tympanic membrane (eardrum) and sometimes also the 3 bones in the middle ear called the ossicles.

If this is the only problem areas, then surgery can be a viable option. If there is a sensorineural or nerve deafness, then surgery alone will not completely solve the problem.

Yet, this condition should be checked by a compenent ENT, to rule out any other problems that can cause these symptoms, such as tumors in the outer/middle ear, cholesteatomas, infections of the mastoid bone, etc.

If surgery is recommended, most insurance plans will cover the cost, especially as certain cases can be life threatening.

So my best advice is to have it checked by a good ENT. Ask for referrals from your primary doctor, etc.

[EnglishDispenser]

Don't forget that (linear) hearing aids can be very successful when dealing with a conductive loss. Once the aids pushes the sound through the blockage you could have a cochlear in very nice condition simply waiting for the chance to process the sound!

Check the probable lifetime of the surgery before taking that route.
Will the surgery last 5 years? 25 years? Forever? If possible, check the statistics.

Also check a key item: what's the risk of the surgery going wrong?