Scientists have found a way to return hearing to older people: the procedure will be very simple

MIT scientists have found a way to restore hearing to patients using regenerative therapy, reports BGR.

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Hearing loss can be a frustrating part of getting older. Hearing loss can also lead to tinnitus, a feeling of isolation, and is even closely related to dementia. This is why research into ways to reverse hearing loss is so worrying for many. And now scientists at MIT may have found a solution.

MIT scientists have found a way to restore hearing

Frequency Therapeutics, a division of MIT, is looking for new ways to reverse hearing loss. But not by equipping patients with hearing aids or implants. Instead, the biotech company wants to use a new kind of regenerative therapy to repair the tiny hair cells that allow us to hear.

As we age and are exposed to loud noises, hair cells begin to die. Since the ears rely heavily on tiny hairs to detect sound, all of these circumstances can lead to hearing loss. But medicine may have found a way to fix it.

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The company is testing a regenerative therapy that uses small molecules to program progenitor cells. These cells are descendants of stem cells. Progenitor cells are located in the inner ear and can create the tiny hair cells that our hearing depends on. Thus, it allows the cells to “hear” again by replacing the hairs that caused the hearing loss in the first place.

This is certainly an interesting step, and one that could prove fruitful as scientists continue to work on this method. So far, the company has achieved exceptional results based on tests that measure speech perception. Frequency co-founder and chief scientist Chris Luz, Ph.D., says, "Speech comprehension is the number one goal for improving hearing."

maturation and growth

To date, Frequency Therapeutics has performed regenerative therapy on more than 200 patients. Three trials conducted by Frequency have shown positive results in the treatment of hearing loss. However, one study showed no improvement. All four tests were based on improved speech comprehension.

The company is now pushing for a new trial involving 124 people. Preliminary results are expected to be available by early next year. If this trial is successful, we may see more widespread testing of regenerative therapies. There is still a long way to go before it appears on the official market. However, the results so far look promising for those who need to get their hearing back.

In addition, as the program develops and grows, scientists believe that it will become much easier to administer.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if in 10 or 15 years, thanks to the resources put into this and the incredible advances in science, we can reach a point where hearing loss treatment is like LASIK (a type of excimer laser vision correction) where you get in and out in an hour or two and you can fully restore your vision,” Jeff Karp, a member of the School of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard MIT, said in a statement.

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If so, then sometime in the future, we may be able to fully restore hearing. This alone can have a huge impact on society.

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