What You Should Know About Seeing An ENT
There are a wide variety of health problems that we can all fall susceptible to, there is no doubt about that. And while your general care doctor might be able to help you with some of them, it is likely that he or she will not have the expertise needed to deal with some of the more specialty conditions and treatments you might need. In such cases, your doctor is likely to refer you to a specialist, one who will be able to help you get the most accurate diagnosis possible – and the most thorough treatment for whatever might be ailing you or causing a problem with your overall health.
Ear nose and throat doctors are one such type of specialist. Ear nose and throat doctors, also known as ENTs, are common found throughout the country. Many people see ear nose and throat doctors on a regular basis, as these ear nose and throat doctors can deal with a wide array of concerns and complaints from their patients, so long as it is related to their specialties of the ear, nose, or throat (as one, of course, might have already assumed).
For instance, ear nose and throat doctors are quite competent when it comes to dealing with hearing loss. After all, hearing loss is actually quite common, perhaps even more common than the average person might think. Hearing loss is particularly common among the elderly population (those who are at the age of 65 or older), as up to one quarter of all people who are in this group deal with hearing loss that is bad enough to be considered disabling, something that is likely to very much impact their overall quality of life.
Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken by ear nose and throat doctors to alleviate these issues. Hearing aids are commonly fitted, and hearing aids can reduce tinnitus and improve the overall amount of hearing that a patient is able to have. There are even multiple types of hearing aids out there, something that is hugely beneficial for people of all ages and life stages.
After all, ear nose and throat doctors will know that hearing loss does not just impact the elderly (though this is the largest population impacted, of course). As a matter of fact, up to 15% of all school age children are dealing with some level of hearing loss as well. Treating this hearing loss can help children to thrive academically as well as socially, and can make their overall world experience much better than it would otherwise likely be. Therefore, if you suspect your child has a problem with hearing, making an appointment with a local ENT doctor is likely to be a good idea. After all, it’s far better to be safe than sorry when it comes to matters of health.
Ear nose and throat doctors can also help to diagnose certain types of cancer, something that many people aren’t really aware of. After all, there are a number of different types of cancers that can originate in the area of specialty for these ear nose and throat doctors. Oral cancer, for one, is common among those who have smoked or used tobacco products. Vocal cord cancer is also more common than many might realize, diagnosed in up to 10,000 people over the course of just one single year – and that’s in the United States alone, let alone anywhere else in the world as a whole. For many people, this diagnosis first came at the hands of an ear nose and throat doctor.
More minor conditions can also be dealt with by many ear nose and throat doctors. Swimmers ear, for instance, is one of them. Swimmers ear is a very common condition, one that is particularly prevalent among children. Typically, swimmers ear will be able to clear up on its own. However, swimmers ear that lasts more than ten days might be a sign of a larger problem. In such a case, going in to see one of the ear nose and throat doctors in your area is likely to be worth it, even just to make sure that nothing is going on with your child’s ears.
