Q: Which doctor should I consult for noise-induced hearing loss?
A: An ENT specialist can help you to treat and manage noise-induced hearing loss. An Audiologist can help in hearing conservation program.
Q: How can a person’s ear be damaged by loud sounds?
A: Loud sounds can cause trauma to the hair cells that are located in the cochlea of the inner ear. The eardrum receives the sound and sends it as mechanical vibrations to the inner ear via the three tiny bones of the middle ear. The last tiny bone is attached to the membrane that encloses the fluid inside the inner ear. The movement of the fluid in response to the vibrations of the bones and the membrane causes the hair cells to move. These movements are sent to the auditory nerve to the brain, which perceives them as sound.
An unusually loud sound can cause and unusually strong movement of the fluid inside thus causing the hair cells to break or bend. Inflammation and degeneration of these hair cells follow, leading to hearing loss.
Q: How do you damage your hearing?
A: Hearing can be damaged by prolonged exposure to loud sounds. This exposure is due to noise levels at various places like rock concerts, workplace and other environments.
Other reasons for hearing loss include infection, ototoxicity (ear poisoning), tumor in the auditory nerve and other conditions.
Q: What is a safe decibel level?
A: Safe decibel level is determined in terms of age and susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss. Louder the sound, shorter exposure times can be damaging to the ear.
The following values determine the dangerous noise levels and the safe exposure time for a normal person.
|
Sound Level |
Safe Exposure Time |
|
85 decibels |
8 hours |
|
90 decibels |
4 hours |
|
100 decibels |
15 - 30 minutes |
|
110 decibels |
About 2 minutes |
|
115 decibels |
30 seconds |
Q: What is acoustic trauma?
A: Acoustic trauma is a term used to refer to damage to the hearing mechanism due to high sound levels. This can be sudden loud sounds such as explosion or firing a gun near the ear or long term noise exposure.
Q: How does listening to loud music affect your hearing?
A: Whether music or sound of machines and traffic, the sound levels higher than 85 decibels are harmful to the hair cells in the ear. The hair cells work in the same way for noise and music and can be damaged in the same way that noise can bend or break them.
The proximity of the earphones makes the matters worse and the ears more prone to hearing loss. The best way to judge safe loudness level is to be able to hear outside noise and one’s own voice while still listening to your favorite music.
Q: Is loss of hearing hereditary?
A: Some types of hearing loss are hereditary, like the ones that occur in combination with congenital conditions like Down’s syndrome. Hearing loss can also be inherited in an autosomal dominant or autosomal recessive gene.
However, hearing loss mostly is acquired after birth due to diseases, infections, tumors or other reasons that may affect hearing or ear.
