Colds often cause ear congestion, and ear congestion often results in some degree of temporary hearing loss. Most people know this. Thus, if you either have a cold, or had one recently, and you wake up one morning with noticeable hearing loss, you blame it on the cold. Like millions of people each year, you wait until the cold runs it course, then your head (and ears) clear and your hearing returns—and you think nothing of it.

But wait. Here’s the million dollar question. How do you know that your hearing loss is because you have a cold, which can clog your middle ears, and will resolve itself in a week or two as your cold goes away? How do you know that your sudden hearing loss isn’t the result of a virus attacking your inner ear—in which case this is a medical emergency and needs medical attention now if you want to avoid permanent hearing loss?

For years, most primary care physicians have assumed that it was the former, and told their patients to come back in a couple of weeks if their hearing still hadn’t returned. As a result, the people that actually had a viral attack wasted their precious “golden hours” when treatment could have been successful, and are often tragically left with a permanent hearing loss.

Fortunately for us, Dr. Jeffery Harris, chief of otolaryngology/head and neck surgery at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center has come up with a quick test to separate the two conditions.

Here is all you need to do, assuming that only one ear is “blocked.” Hum out loud. If you hear your voice louder in the blocked ear, the problem is congestion in the middle ear, and is probably temporary until your cold goes away and your ear clears.

However, if you hear your voice louder in your good ear, this probably indicates a viral attack causing permanent hearing loss if left untreated. If this is your case, seek treatment immediately. This is a true medical emergency and needs to be treated now if you want a reasonable chance of getting your hearing back. According to Dr. Harris, your chances of getting your hearing back with immediate treatment are greater than 50%.

If both ears are blocked equally, this little test isn’t going to work (unless you can remember how loud humming sounded before you got the cold, and then apply the above rules). It is probably wiser to err on the side of caution if you have reduced hearing in both ears and seek competent medical help now.

For more on sudden hearing loss, read the informative articles, “Sudden Hearing Loss Is a Medical Emergency” (http://www.hearinglosshelp.com/articles/medicalemergency.htm) and “Finding the Right Doctor for Sudden Hearing Loss and Other Ear Problems” (http://www.hearinglosshelp.com/articles/rightdoctor.htm). These articles will help you make informed decisions on what you should consider doing next.

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Neil Bauman, Ph.D., has successfully coped with a life-long severe hearing loss. He is a hearing loss coping skills specialist, author and speaker. He is not a medical doctor and does not prescribe/endorse treatment for medical problems. Visit his website at www.hearinglosshelp.com for a wealth of information concerning hearing loss and related issues.