The report suggested a package of measures, which it calculated would cost $ 1.33 per person per year.
Geneva:
One in four of the world’s population will have hearing problems by 2050, the World Health Organization warned Tuesday, calling for additional investment in prevention and treatment.
The very first global hearing report said the causes of many of the problems – such as infections, illnesses, birth defects, noise exposure, and lifestyle choices – could be prevented.
The report suggested a package of measures, which it calculated would cost $ 1.33 per person per year.
In contrast, the amount of nearly a trillion dollars is lost every year because the problem is not properly addressed.
“Failure to act will be costly in terms of the health and wellbeing of those affected, and the financial losses resulting from their exclusion from communication, education and work,” the report said.
One in five people worldwide currently has hearing problems, he said.
But the report warned, “The number of people with hearing loss could increase by more than 1.5 times in the next three decades” to 2.5 billion people – from 1.6 billion in 2019.
Of the 2.5 billion, 700 million would be serious enough to require some kind of treatment by 2050, up from 430 million in 2019.
Much of the projected increase is due to demographic and population trends, it added.
Poor access to treatment
A major cause of hearing problems is a lack of access to care, especially in low-income countries where there are far fewer professionals available to treat them.
Since nearly 80 percent of people with hearing loss live in such countries, most don’t get the help they need.
Even in wealthier countries with better services, access to care is often uneven, the report said.
And a lack of accurate information and the stigma surrounding ear disease and hearing loss also prevents people from getting the care they need.
“Even health care providers often lack knowledge relevant to prevention, early identification and treatment of hearing loss and ear disorders,” he noted.
The report suggested a package of measures, including public health initiatives ranging from reducing noise in public areas to increasing vaccinations for diseases such as meningitis that can cause hearing loss.
It also recommended systematic screening to identify the problem at key points in people’s lives.
In children, hearing loss could be prevented in 60 percent of the cases.
“An estimated $ 1 trillion is lost each year as a result of our collective failure to adequately address hearing loss,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in the report.
“While the financial burden is enormous, it cannot be quantified, the distress caused by the loss of communication, education, and social interaction associated with unaddressed hearing loss.”
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