In his 20’s, Tony was playing guitar in a rock band and assumed that his hearing loss was due to exposure to loud music. By his mid-30s, Tony’s hearing had deteriorated and became a concern. He was a surfer, living in Hawaii, and assumed that increased hearing loss was a result of chronic “surfer’s ear” - a condition of the ear canal where lumps develop on the bony lining under the skin, eventually causing blockage of the ear canal.

ENT physicians in Hawaii informed him that his hearing loss was not caused by either noise exposure or surfer’s ear, but was the result of a hereditary disorder called otosclerosis, wherein the stapes bone of the middle ear becomes “fixed” and can no longer effectively transmit the vibration of sound signals past the ear drum and into the inner ear. His treatment options were surgery to free up or replace the stapes bone or to wear a hearing aid. The thought of surgery frightened him and he had the notion that only old people wore hearing aids.

When he moved back to the mainland to establish a landscape irrigation business, Tony decided to consult a local ENT physician in hopes that a second opinion might offer different alternatives. The doctor confirmed the diagnosis and once again surgery or hearing aids were the optionspresented. He tried hearing aids and while his hearing did improve, he soon learned two important lessons. Hearing aids give annoying feedback when you are playing live music, and they definitely don’t mix with water. Because his landscape irrigation career involved working in and around water and sprinkler systems, he ruined more than one hearing aid. Removing his aids before working or surfing transported him back into a world of silence.

Tony learned about stapes surgery or stapedotomy, where a prosthesis is used to bypass the fixed stapes bone, allowing transmission of sound vibrations from the middle ear to the inner ear fluids. After some research, he became excited about the possibility of living life without hearing aids. He overcame his reticence about surgery and made an appointment for an examination at the House Clinic. Following his stapedotomy, Tony’s life changed significantly. He became more involved in conversations because he was able to catch what was being said. He no longer had to worry about removing his hearing aids to avoid water damage or dealing with annoying feedback when playing with his band.

“The biggest thing for me was being able to hear the sounds of the sea,” says Tony. “I was brought to tears when I was able to hear the surf again. I loved the incredible sound of the waves and the wind was music to me. I could hear the other surfers and sailboarders interacting with each other and I was able to participate again. I strongly encourage anyone with otosclerosis to pursue the stapedotomy. This procedure has radically changed my life and the lives of those near to me.”