Summary: 40 million people in Africa suffer from hearing loss, which could rise to 54 million by 2030 unless urgent action is taken, costing the region $27 billion annually Possibly.
Key points:
Africa faces a severe shortage of otolaryngologists, with more than 56% of countries having only one otolaryngologist per million people. Hearing loss disproportionately affects poor and vulnerable people, and lack of access to affordable treatment exacerbates inequalities in health services. Hearing loss in children is preventable, but regular hearing screening and early intervention are lacking in many African countries.
Approximately 40 million people in Africa live with hearing loss, but that number could rise to 5,400 by 2030 unless urgent action is taken to address the problem, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report. It is possible that this number will increase to millions.
The impact of hearing loss in Africa
According to the WHO Status Report on Ear and Hearing Care in the African Region, released during the Africa Summit on Hearing Loss in Nairobi, Kenya, hearing loss has a significant impact on human lives and economies, with an estimated 27 billion yen per year in Africa. It is said that there is a dollar loss.
Without urgent intervention, widespread hearing loss, which disproportionately affects the poor and vulnerable, will worsen and existing inequalities in access to health services across Africa will widen. Sho.
For children, hearing loss has far-reaching effects, including delayed language development, increased risk of poor educational outcomes, and limited future career prospects. Adults with untreated hearing loss often face feelings of loneliness and isolation, and are at increased risk of depression and dementia, the WHO says.
WHO report on hearing loss
The report identifies multiple factors driving the rapid increase in the prevalence of hearing loss in the African region. This is largely due to the severe shortage of ear and hearing care (EHC) professionals and the uneven distribution of available workforce, favoring urban areas. For example, more than 56% of African countries have only one ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist for every million people. In contrast, in Europe the number is approximately 50 per million people.
Meanwhile, more than three-quarters of African countries have less than one audiologist and speech therapist per million people. Additionally, 33 million Africans could benefit from hearing aids, but only about 10% have access to hearing aids due to lack of EHC funding and the resulting high costs.
Data from 43 African countries shows that 36 countries provide EHC services at the tertiary level, while similar services are not provided at the primary care level. This is despite the fact that most common causes of hearing loss are preventable through simple public health interventions and measures to reduce risk factors.
According to the report, up to 75% of hearing loss in children living in low- and middle-income countries is due to preventable causes such as infections, common ear diseases, and birth complications. However, the analysis found that most countries do not routinely conduct newborn hearing screenings.
Overcoming challenges in hearing care
Even in countries with EHC programs, EHC interventions are not integrated into priority health programs such as school health programs, occupational health programs, and healthy aging programs. According to the authors, this challenge was exacerbated by the lack of national policies and plans to strengthen EHC provision, and where these plans existed, the level of implementation was low. Additionally, 35% of countries do not allocate a budget for EHC activities, and patients must bear all costs of associated treatment and care.
Among other things, the report recommends that countries use the report to galvanize action at the highest levels, including advocating for policies focused on EHC and related activities. There is also an urgent need to integrate EHC into existing programs to optimize the use of scarce resources. Governments should consider public-private partnerships to strengthen EHC services.
The report also highlighted the need for dedicated financing for EHC to develop facilities, provide products and technology, and optimize EHC research and development and capacity building of medical human resources.
Photo: Dreamstime
