For anyone who is finding it tougher to hear ladies voices or children’s voices than to hear male voices, it could be an indication that you have suffered some amount of high-frequency hearing loss. Women’s and children’s voices have a higher frequency than men’s voices – 165 to 255 Hertz, instead of 85 to 180 Hertz for men. On top of that, women’s and children’s voices generally have less amplitude (meaning, they are less loud), so you might hear them at a different volume than men’s voices. Although you may suspect that you have suffered a high-frequency hearing loss because you are having trouble hearing these voices, the only way to know for certain is to make an appointment for an exam.

If it turns out to be high-frequency hearing loss, you’re not alone; this is the most common form of hearing loss. It can be caused by aging, by genetics, by prolonged exposure to loud noises, and by certain diseases and drugs. But due to advances made in hearing aid technology, high-frequency hearing loss can be effectively treated.

Digital hearing aids are programmable to offer different levels of sound amplification and different frequencies. For a person suffering from high-frequency hearing loss, for example, a technician could program the digital hearing aid to raise the volume of high-pitched sounds, while not raising the volume of low-pitched sounds as much. Open-fit hearing aids provide another treatment option, because their design leaves the ear canal open so that low- and mid-frequency sounds enter the ear normally, and only the high-frequency sounds are amplified by the aid. Cochlear implants provide a third option for treating high-frequency hearing loss. This is a more expensive solution because the implantation procedure requires minor surgery, but it can be effective in the treatment of conditions such as nerve deafness and industrial deafness.

Whatever your particular hearing problem may be, however, the first step to understanding and treating it is to have an examination by a hearing professional. Your hearing exam could reveal that your high-frequency hearing loss is caused by a treatable blockage such as a build up of ear wax and can be easily corrected.If you are currently having trouble hearing women’s and children’s voices, stop worrying about what might be causing it and make an appointment to get the true answer.