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Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL)

Remember when your mom told you to turn down your stereo or it would damage your hearing? You probably thought she was just an old hen who worried too much. Well, it turns out she was probably right! Noise is a major cause of hearing loss. Have a look at the articles below for additional insights into noise induced hearing loss (NIHL).

Here's a bunch of information on medications that may prevent NIHL!

Environmental noise as a cause of hearing loss

Hearing loss and the military

Music as a cause of hearing loss

Recreational activities as a cause of hearing loss

Toys as a cause of hearing loss

Special noise considerations for kids

Protecting yourself from noise induced hearing loss

Work and noise induced hearing loss

More on this and related topics

Noise is an enemy of hearing, and it really doesn't take a lot of noise to damage hearing. This is something the baby boomers are finding out as their hearing deteriorates years before their parents' did. Here's a great article on noise as the cause of hearing loss, how much noise is necessary, and how noise damages the hearing mechanism. 

How loud is too loud? Well, it depends on lots of things, like frequency, duration, and an individual's response to loud sounds. Here's an example to help you make sense of this. The CDC says that a chain saw produces noise of intensity 110 db. OSHA says that the maximum exposure time for 110 db is half an hour. So the conclusion is that if you operate a chain saw without hearing protection for longer than a half an hour, you are putting your hearing at risk.

April 2013 - Gene Linked to Hearing Loss Caused by Noise AND Aging

April 2013 - Noise - an Everyday Cause of Illness

May 2012 - Better Hearing Institute Condemns Use of Sound Cannons

April 2012 - Atlanta Hearing Doctor Helps Track Target in "The Great American Manhunt"

December 2011 - The Sounds of the Holidays Can Help a Person Recognize Hearing Loss

October 2011 - AHRF Researchers Believe Damage From Noise Occurs Long Before Hearing Loss Is Perceived

August 2011 - Settlement for Hearing Damage Caused by Pest Control Explosions

May 2011 - A Different Look at Noise Exposure, Hearing Loss, and Time Limits

February 2011 - Combination Therapy for Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

January 2011 - Is your convertible damaging your hearing?

January 2011 - Are Girls More at Risk for Noise-Induced Hearing Loss?

October 2010 - Some Chemicals Heighten Hearing Loss Due to Noise

May 2010 - Stress Response System in the Ear Protects Against Hearing Loss

January 2010 - Baby Boomers' Hearing Better than Their Parents at Same Age!

November 2009 - NHCA Petitions OSHA to Lower Permissible Exposure Limits for Noise

October 2009 - Men nearly 3 times as likely to develop noise-induced hearing loss

Sept 2009 - Field Study Evaluating Effectiveness of NIHL Prevention Technologies

March 2008 - Zebrafish Provide Useful Screening Tool for Genes, Drugs That Protect Against Hearing Loss

 

March 2007 - Auditory hazard specialist gets a bang out of research

 

October 2006 - Study of NYC transit system noise levels finds daily rides can result in hearing loss

 

August 2006 - By now we should all know the dangers of noise induced hearing Loss (NIHL) and bow to prevent it. If you or someone you know needs a refresher, this article from "Inside, the NIDCD Newsletter" should do the job.

 

July 2006 - RNID research discovers genetic link to hearing loss caused by loud noise

 

June 2006 - Drug to Prevent and Treat NIHL Enters Clinical Testing

 

June 2006 - Auris Medical Otoprotective Drug Clinical Trial

 

April 2006 - The presence of carbon monoxide seems to intensify hearing loss due to noise.

 

March 2006 - Survey confirms widespread hearing loss symptoms

June 2005 - You know that noise can cause hearing loss. But did you know that the presence of carbon monoxide appears to increase the detrimental effect of noise on hearing?

April 2005 - You missed International Noise Awareness Day!

July 2003 - Well, this article isn't exactly about NIHL; it's about how noise can elevate stress hormones.

June 2003 - Is it just me or are we suddenly being inundated with articles on noise and its effect on hearing loss? It seems that I see a related article at least once a week! I guess that's good, if it means people are becoming aware of noise's potential to damage hearing. Here's a great article on noise from ASHA

November 2001 - Read the wonderful fact sheet from the House Ear Institute about Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL).

More on this and related topics

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Settlement for Hearing Damage Caused by Pest Control Explosions

August 2011

A rural Cottage Grove man has obtained a $37,000 judgment against a local pest control company he sued last year, alleging that its "Caddyshack" approach to gopher eradication permanently damaged his hearing. The 1980 movie ends with Bill Murray playing a frustrated golf course groundskeeper who blows up the pests' burrows in a series of explosions timed to Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. Mike Lester's July 2010 lawsuit sought $146,000 in damages from Cynergy Pest Control and Home Inspections, saying its blasts on a neighbor's property left him with persistent ringing in his ears. The retired fencing contractor said this week that he accepted the Cottage Grove company's judgment offer of $37,000 because it was enough to help defray his future hearing aid costs and because it made the payment a matter of public record.  Full Story

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Are Girls More at Risk for Noise-Induced Hearing Loss?

January 2011

Another new study shows girls may be more at risk for noise-induced hearing loss. Published online in Pediatrics (Vol. 127 No. 1 January 2011, pp. e39-e46 [doi:10.1542/peds.2010-0926]) a new study entitled "Prevalence of noise-induced threshold shifts and hearing loss among U.S. youths" looked at trends in adolescents. The study found an increased prevalence of noise-induced threshold shifts in girls, and concluded that it may have been caused by increased exposure to recreational noise as well as minimal use of hearing protection in girls.  Full Story

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Mechanisms of Noise-Induced Hair Cell Death

November 2009

Cochlear sensory cells include outer hair cells and inner hair cells that act as a mechano-electrical transducer and convert mechanical stimuli to neural activities. Acoustic trauma-such as exposure to intense noise-causes these cells to die. Loss of hair cells leads to permanent hearing loss, a common cause of acquired hearing loss in adults. Understanding how cochlear hair cells respond to acoustic overstimulation is pivotal for exploring protective strategies for reducing noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). In the past, investigators focused on the physiological and morphological impacts of acoustic trauma. Now as scientists probe the molecular mechanisms of hair cell damage, studies show multiple modes of acoustic trauma. These mechanisms may one day influence the treatment for hearing loss.   Full Story

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Convertibles Hazardous to Your Hearing?

October 2009

Convertible lovers who take to the open road with the top down may be risking hearing damage, according to a new study out of the U.K. "If you are exposed for long periods above 85 decibels [of sound], you have the potential for hearing loss," says Philip Michael, MD, an ear-nose-throat surgeon at Worcestershire Royal Hospital in Worcestershire, U.K., and the study's lead author. In his study, he found that the noise level with the top down was higher than 85 decibels. "The maximum noise was at 70 miles per hour and that was 89 decibels. It has the potential for causing long-term hearing loss.''  Full Story

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Mass transit can be hard on the ears

June 2009

The New York City mass transit system provides affordable and efficient transportation, but it could be hard on the ears, a team of researchers said. [snip] The lowest average levels measured, 74.9 dBA and 75.1 dBA, were obtained from the Long Island Railroad and Metro-North trains, respectively. The very highest levels measured in the study were found on an MTA subway platform at 102.1dBA and at a bus stop 101.6 dBA -- a chainsaw is 100 dBA. "At some of the highest noise levels we obtained such as on subway platforms, as little as two minutes of exposure per day would be expected to cause hearing loss in some people with frequent ridership," Neitzel said.  Full Story

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Lawsuits on Hearing Loss due to Bluetooth Headsets Settled

February 2009

The multidistrict cases alleging that Motorola Inc. and Apple Inc. did not adequately warn consumers about potential hearing loss caused by their Bluetooth headsets have dissipated into a whimper. Regarding Motorola's Bluetooth headsets, a federal judge in Los Angeles approved a preliminary settlement on Feb. 9 that provides no economic recoveries for putative class members. Bluetooth Headset Products Liability Litigation, No. MDL-1822 (C.D. Calif.). Instead, Motorola and two other defendants, Plantronics Inc. and GN Netcom Inc., which makes Jabra Bluetooth headsets, have agreed to pay a total of $100,000 to four institutions related to hearing loss and post warnings of acoustic information on their Web sites and in product manuals and packaging.  Full Story

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The Ultimate Sound Loudness Chart

July 2008

The hearing threshold for a person with normal hearing is around 0 db, and sound tends to become "too loud" for most people around 110 db or so. A person in the front row of a rock concert can experience sounds of 120 db or higher. So what is a 130 db sound like? 140 db? 150db? How about 200 db? 300 db?  Full Story

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Extended cellphone use causes hearing loss: study

September 2007

For years, there have been worries that cellphones can cause anything from cancer to brain tumours. Now, a study is sounding a new warning for cellphone users. The study is being presented Wednesday at a meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck and Surgery Foundation in Washington, D.C. It suggests that long term cellphone use, particularly using the phone primarily on one ear, may cause inner ear damage. Dr. Naresh Panda from Chandigarh, India studied 100 young cell users. He found that those who had used the phone for more than 60 minutes total a day for over four years had noticeable losses in high frequency hearing. The hearing loss was greatest in the dominant ear -- the ear usually used for their cellphone conversations.   Full Story

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Longer mobile users at risk of hearing loss

August 2007

People using mobile phones for more than four years and longer than 30 minutes a day are at risk of developing hearing loss particularly at higher speech frequencies, a study conducted by Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research has said. "This hearing loss was more in the dominant ear (ear of use). Presence of fullness in the ears, ear warmth, strange noises in the ear are warning signals which should not be ignored," Dr Naresh Panda, head of the department of Otolaryngology (ENT) at PGIMER, who along with his team conducted the 18-month long study, said.  Full  Story