Deafness

What is deafness? Deafness is the complete loss of hearing. What some people call partial deafness is now better known as being hard of hearing. For more information, see our page on hearing loss. If you are deaf, you cannot hear well enough to hold a conversation through sound alone, although some people who are deaf hear noises in their ears like ringing, humming, hissing, whistling, clicking, roaring, whooshing or buzzing. This is known as tinnitus. Children who have hearing problems might not respond to your voice or loud noises. They might also search for your voice, or be doing poorly at