If you have a sudden loss of hearing, particularly in one ear, get an appointment right away. The audiologists at Wellear are NHS trained professionals who can test your hearing help identify any issues.

Talk to us if a loss of hearing is causing you trouble. Age-related hearing loss happens little by little. So you may not notice it at first.

Factors that damage or lead to loss of the hairs and nerve cells in the inner ear include:

• Aging. The inner ear breaks down over time.

• Loud noise. Being around loud sounds can damage the cells of the inner ear. Damage can happen by being around loud noises over time. Or the damage can come from a short blast of noise, such as from a gunshot.

• Heredity. Your genes may make you more likely to have ear damage from sound or from aging.

• Noises on the job. Jobs where loud noise is constant, such as farming, construction or factory work, can lead to damage inside the ear.

• Noises at play. Exposure to explosive noises, such as from firearms and jet engines, can cause immediate, permanent hearing loss. Other activities with dangerously high noise levels include snowmobiling, motorcycling, carpentry or listening to loud music.

• Some medicines. These include the antibiotic gentamicin, sildenafil (Viagra) and certain medicines used to treat cancer, which can damage the inner ear. Very high doses of aspirin, other pain relievers, antimalarial drugs or loop diuretics can cause short-term effects on hearing. These include ringing in the ears, also known as tinnitus, or hearing loss.

• Some illnesses. Illnesses such as meningitis that cause high fever can harm the cochlea.