In a broad sense, there are three types of hearing loss. The first, sensorineural, involves the inner ear or cochlea, the auditory nerve, or a central neural lesion. The second, conductive hearing loss, is caused by the inhibition of sound from gaining access to the inner ear. This inhibition can be caused by something as simple as an ear canal filled with cerumen, fluid in the middle ear, or something complicated such as ossicular chain fixation. The third type of hearing loss is a mixed loss, that is, a combination of sensorineural and conductive. This article outlines the causes for these types of hearing loss, how they relate to the pediatric and adult populations, and treatment options.