Noise Induced Hearing Loss and the Individual Susceptibility to the Noise

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Noise Induced Hearing Loss and the Individual Susceptibility to the Noise International Tinnitus Journal 2, 73-82 (1996) Noise Induced Hearing Loss and the Individual Susceptibility to the Noise Kyong-Myong Chon, M.D., Hwan-Jung Roh, M.D., Eui-Kyung Goh, M.D., Soo-Geun Wang, M.D. Department of Otolaryngology, College of Medicine, Pusan National University, Pusan, Korea Abstract: Although there is no specific treatment for modality of occupational noise-induced hearing loss c~nHL), the best way to manage this problem is the prevention. The fundame,lltal prevention of NIHL is to find the persons who are more susceptible to the noise and to avoid work in the noisy environment prior to or during employment. The purpose of this study is to investigate .' the actual status of NIHL in the industrial complex of Pusan and Kyongnam area in Korea and to evaluate the individual susceptibility to the noise and to set-up the preventive indices of NIHL, using temporary threshold shift (TIS) and its recovery time after noise stimulation. INTRODUCTION characteristics of the middle and inner ear, such as the stiffness of the cochlear partition, thickness of the basilar he problems of occupational hearing impairment and tectorial membrane, blood supply ofthe cochlea, rate T present both a challenge and an opportunity to of oxygen metabolism and density of afferent and efferent otolaryngologists, since NIHL produced by innervation would be expected to determine how much chronic exposure to excessive sound in the work place is exposure to noise can be enough to cause NIHL. the second most common cause of acquired hearing Unfortunately one cannot measure these directly in the impairment in adults.l South Korea has been trying to intact organism, so indirect measurement could be used develop its industry in a nation-wide base since the 1960's to identify the more noise-susceptible individuals before and NIHL as an occupational disease was considered to NIHL is incurred. The validity grounds, the most likely be seriously underestimated due to the shortage of overall predictor of susceptibility to NIHL could be occupational medical specialists, even though there was auditory fatigue. However, the use of fatigue tests as a legal hearing conservation program designed to protect susceptibility predictor has not been successful and workers exposed to high levels of noise.2 However, practicable until now. 3,4 The temporary threshold shift starting from the late 1980's, the consideration and (TTS) is a temporary sensorineural hearing loss that prophylactic management about noise exposure have recovers almost completely within 24 hours after been increasing. It is important that the otolaryngologists exposure to loud noise for seconds-to-hours. Although should be familiar with a government hearing conser­ the correlation between TTS and noise-induced perma­ vation program and medicolegal aspects of NIHL. nent threshold shift (NIPTS) remains uncertain, a daily , NIHL, although not medically or surgically treatable, is exposure of noise does not cause TTS, and will not result preventable and the test treatment of NIHL is the in NIPTS over a working lifetime.5 The repeated TTS prevention. Although there is a legal obligatory hearing and its incomplete recovery have been known as a kind conservation program, the desirable and ideal preventive of essential process to cause NIPTS.6,7 method is to check the individual susceptibility to the The authors investigated the actual condition of NIHL noise and to avoid work in the noisy environment. in the industrial complex in Pusan and Kyongnam area, However, everyone is not equally susceptible to the noise. one of the largest industrial complex in Korea and Until now, it is clear that the static and dynamic examined the TTS and its recovery process after noise stimulation in both normal control and NIHL groups to Reprint requests: Kyong-Myong Chon, M.D., Depart­ establish the criteria of individual susceptibility to noise ment of Otolaryngology, Pusan National University Hos­ and to set-up the preventive indices of NIHL using ITS pital, 1-10 Ami-Dong, Seo-gu, Pusan 602-739, Korea. and its recovery time. 73 International Tinnitus Journal Vol. 2, No.1, 1996 Kyong-Myong Chon et al. MATERIALS AND METHODS discrimination score (DS) at 40 dB above SRT. This group was evaluated for the susceptibility to the noise by the Hearing tests of workers in the noisy industry change of DS after noise stimulation. For checking the change of pure tone threshold, Approximately 2,258 workers of the noisy industrial continuous pure tone (CPT), continuous band noise complex in Pusan and Kyongnam area of Korea, who (CBN), continuous white noise (CWN) stimulation of did not have any history of ear disease and noise exposure 90 dB above threshold at 4 kHz were given for of pre-employment, were examined at a mass screening 10 minutes, and intermittent while noise (lWN) stimula­ for audiometric test at 1 and 4 kHz with mobile audio­ tion was given for 30 seconds and then rest for 30 seconds, metry unit by an otolaryngologist. In addition to audio­ repeating 20 times. Immediately after each mode of noise metric data, a brief review of the otologic system, such stimulation, pure tone threshold was checked at as local finding of ear drum, tuning fork test and 30 second intervals and the TTS and its recovery time nystagmus examination were carried out. The workers were obtained. who had over 40 dB pure tone threshold of air condition For measuring the change of DS, CBN and CWN without masking at any of these two frequencies were stimulation of90 dB above threshold at4 kHz were given referred to the Audiology Clinic of Pusan National for 10 minutes. After each noise stimulation, DS at University Hospital and were checked for the hearing 40 dB above SRT was checked and its recovery time level using Nagashima 51A-T72 type audiometer by was obtained. ascending method at least three times. The average hearing level was divided into two ranges, speech range Tests for susceptibility to the noise: (SR), 500 Hz + 2 x 1000 Hz + 2000 Hz / 4 and high Subject with NIHL frequency range (HFR), 4000 Hz + 8000 Hz / 2. The hearing loss was classified according to hearing level The materials were derived from 64 cases (78 ears) out and frequencies as follows: of 612 workers confirmed as NIHL at Audiology Clinic 1) Mild deafness (M), 15-20 dB in SR and HFR. of Pusan National University Hospital. After CWN 2) Speech range deafness (S), over 20 dB in SR. stimulation with 70 dB suprathreshold at 4 kHz for 3) High tone deafness (H), over 20 dB in HFR. 10 minutes, pure tone threshold was checked at 4) Both range deafness (B), over 20 dB in SR and HFR. 30 second intervals for 10 minutes. The pure tone audiometer was specially equipped with NAB-Ol Tests for susceptibility to the noise: audiobooster (Nagashima Co., Japan) to amplify to Subjects with normal hearing 130 dB. The normal hearing sujects who did not have any RESULTS audiologic symptoms and abnormal finding at otologic examination were composed of two groups. One group Hearing tests of workers in the noisy industry of 69 cases (137 ears) who were within 15 dB from 250 to 4000 Hz and within 10 dB at 4000 Hz and this group 1. The incidence of N1HL was checked for the susceptibility to the noise by the After mass screening audiometric test of 2,258 workers change of pure tone threshold after noise stimulation. (4,516 ears) and secondary otologic evaluation by the Another group of 87 cases who had within 15 dB of board certified otolaryngologist, 612 workers (1,224 ears) speech reception threshold (SRT) and got 100% were confirmed as NIHL (27.1 %). According to the Table 1. The incidence of NIHL related to the duration of noise exposure and age Durat- ion -4 5-9 10-14 15-19 20- total (yrs) Age Exam NIHL , Exam NIHL \ Exam NIHL , Exam NIHL \ Exam NIH , Exam NIHL , L (yrs) Ear Ear Ear Ear Ear Ear -19 1,~36 202 14 .1 12 2 16.7 1,448 204 14 .1 20-29 1,172 356 30.4 238 70 29 4 58 14 24.1 1,468 440 30 . 0 30-39 398 112 43.2 530 164 30.9 206 66 32.0 50 16 32.0 1,184 418 35.3 40-49 98 42 42.9 112 44 39.3 108 40 37.0 40 14 35.0 12 4 33.3 310 144 38.9 50- 14 6 42.9 6 2 33.3 6 2 33.3 10 4 40.0 10 4 40.0 46 18 39.1 Total 3, ll8 178 25.0 898 282 31. 4 378 122 32.3 100 34 34.0 22 8 36 4 4,516 1,224 27.1 74 Noise Induced Hearing Loss International Tinnitus Journal Vol. 2, No.1, 1996 duration of noise exposure and age, the incidence of exposure and there was a tendency to increase hearing NIHL was rapidly increased within 10 years of noise threshold in proportion to the duration above IS years of exposure and within 30 years of age. So the NIHL was noise exposure. Between 4-8 kHz, the hearing loss was mostly established within nine years after noise expo­ proportional to the duration of noise exposure. The sure and below 30 years-of-age (Table 1). hearing level at 4 kHz was higher than other frequency and this is the characteristic ofNIHL, Cs dip phenomenon 2. The incidence of NIHL: (Table 4). relation of each hearing type Among the 1,224 ears of NIHL, type B was the most 4. Audiogram types of NIHL: prevalent and then type H, type S and type M in order.
Recommended publications
  • Investigations of Auditory Filters Based Excitation Patterns for Assessment of Noise Induced Hearing Loss
    Investigations of Auditory Filters Based Excitation Patterns for Assessment of Noise Induced Hearing Loss Wisam Subhi Al-Dayyeni, Pengfei Sun, Jun Qin Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, USA Abstract: Noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) as one of major avoidable occupational related health issues has been studied for decades. To assess NIHL, the excitation pattern (EP) has been considered as one of mechanisms to estimate movements of basilar membrane (BM) in cochlea. In this study, two auditory filters, dual resonance nonlinear (DRNL) filter and rounded- exponential (ROEX) filter, have been applied to create two EPs, referring as the velocity EP and the loudness EP, respectively. Two noise hazard metrics are also proposed based on the developed EPs to evaluate hazardous levels caused by different types of noise. Moreover, Gaussian noise and pure-tone noise have been simulated to evaluate performances of the developed EPs and noise metrics. The results show that both developed EPs can reflect the responses of BM to different types of noise. For Gaussian noise, there is a frequency shift between the velocity EP and the loudness EP. For pure-tone noise, both EPs can reflect the frequencies of input noise accurately. The results suggest that both EPs can be potentially used for assessment of NIHL. Key words: Noise induced hearing loss; excitation pattern; basilar membrane motion; auditory filter; noise assessment metrics. 1. Introduction Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) remains as one of the most common health related problems nowadays as stated by the World Health Organization (WHO). One of the main causes of the permanent hearing loss is the exposure to excessive noise [1-3].
    [Show full text]
  • Current Practices in the Assessment of Recreational Noise-Induced Hearing Loss: a Review
    Current Practices in the Assessment of Make Listening Safe WHO Recreational Noise- induced Hearing Loss: a review This document presents a review of current practices in the assessment of hearing loss caused by exposure to loud sounds in recreational settings. The review will be used to February 2017 stimulate discussion and consider the points raised in the accompanying discussion paper regarding the need for a universal research protocol. This review has been undertaken by Dr. Kamakshi Gopal, in collaboration with the World Health Organization. Current Practices in the Assessment of Recreational Noise-induced Hearing Loss: a review Authored by: Dr Kamakshi Gopal Professor of Audiology University of Northern Texas United States with inputs from …… any other name to be added?? Reviewed by: Dr Peter Thorne Professor of Audiology University of Auckland New Zealand Dr Shelly Chadha Technical Officer, Prevention of deafness and hearing loss World Health Organization Geneva, Switzerland 1 Table of Contents Purpose ……………………………………………………………………………. 3 Methods …………………………………………………………………………... 3 Executive Summary ………………………………………………………….. 4 Concerts/Discotheques/Bars ……………………………………………. 6 Personal Audio Systems (PAS) Studies ………………………………. 22 Sporting Events (Arenas) ………………………………………………….. 40 References ……………………………………………………………………….. 42 2 PURPOSE OF THE REPORT Hearing loss, temporary or permanent, from exposure to recreational noise is a worsening public health problem, particularly in children, adolescents, and young adults. This is attributable to the fact that young people utilize their leisure and relaxation time in activities that expose them to high levels of music or noise at concerts, bars, sports arenas and clubs, or listen to unsafe levels of music on their personal audio systems. Despite this emerging widespread trend, there are currently no universal standards set to limit exposure to recreational noise.
    [Show full text]
  • Occupational Noise Induced Hearing Loss and Audiometry
    2019 Occupational Noise Induced Hearing Loss and Audiometry ProfRAPID Ian Cameron REVIEW, Head John Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research The University of Sydney Kolling Institute of Medical Research [email protected] Dr Candice McBain, Research Assistant John Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research The University of Sydney Kolling Institute of Medical Research [email protected] Version 2 dated 25 June 2019 Summary Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) affects approximately five percent of the population worldwide (Zhou et al., 2013), making it a global public health concern. Occupational NIHL (ONIHL) occurs from continuous exposure to excessive noise, usually over a number of years. Continuous or intermittent noise in the work environment exceeding 85dB(A) during an eight-hour shift, or impact noise exceeding 120dB(A) during an eight hour working shift, is considered hazardous. Noise-induced hearing loss (HL) resulting from exposure to excessive occupational noise is a substantial health burden, and one of the most common chronic occupational diseases. In Australia, between July 2002 and June 2007, there were approximately 16,500 occupational NIHL workers compensation claims. Exposure to excessive noise can cause permanent damage to auditory structures; resulting in permanent threshold shifts that ultimately cause hearing damage. Noise induced hearing loss is a sensorineural (SNHL) hearing loss categorised by a high frequency 3-6 kHz notching audiometric pattern. Damage resulting from noise exposure usually begins at 3-6 kHz (Ali, Morgan, & Ali, 2014). However, with continued noise exposure, damage can spread to both lower (2, 1 kHz) and higher frequencies (8 kHz; Ali, (Morgan, & Ali, 2014).
    [Show full text]
  • Combined Exposure to Noise and Ototoxic Substances TE-80-09-996-EN-N
    Combined exposure to noise and ototoxic substances TE-80-09-996-EN-N TE-80-09-996-EN-N Combined exposure to Noise and Ototoxic Substances COMBINED EXPOSURE TO NOISE AND OTOTOXIC SUBSTANCES EU-OSHA – European Agency for Safety and Health at Work 1 Combined exposure to Noise and Ototoxic Substances Authors: Pierre Campo, Katy Maguin, Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité pour la prévention des accidents du travail et des maladies professionnelles – INRS, France Stefan Gabriel, Angela Möller, Eberhard Nies, Institut für Arbeitsschutz der Deutschen Gesetzlichen Unfallversicherung – BGIA, (Institute for Occupational Safety and Health of the German Social Accident Insurance), Germany María Dolores Solé Gómez, Instituto Nacional de Seguridad e Higiene en el Trabajo – INSHT (Spanish National Institute for Safety and Hygiene at Work), Spain Esko Toppila, Työterveyslaitos Institutet for Arbetshygien (Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – FIOH), Finland Members of the Topic Centre Risk Observatory Edited by: Eusebio Rial González, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) Joanna Kosk-Bienko, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) This report was commissioned by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA). Its contents, including any opinions and/or conclusions expressed, are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of EU-OSHA. Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers, or these calls may be billed.
    [Show full text]
  • Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Young Adults Maeve Derrig Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
    Augustana College Augustana Digital Commons Communication Sciences and Disorders: Student Communication Sciences and Disorders Scholarship & Creative Works 2016 Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Young Adults Maeve Derrig Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.augustana.edu/csdstudent Part of the Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons Augustana Digital Commons Citation Derrig, Maeve. "Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Young Adults" (2016). Communication Sciences and Disorders: Student Scholarship & Creative Works. http://digitalcommons.augustana.edu/csdstudent/7 This Student Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Communication Sciences and Disorders at Augustana Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Communication Sciences and Disorders: Student Scholarship & Creative Works by an authorized administrator of Augustana Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. NOISE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS IN YOUNG ADULTS 1 Introduction An 18-year-old high school senior comes into an audiology clinic complaining of ringing in her ears and occasional difficulty understanding her friends, parents, and others in conversation. The audiologist performs an otoscopic examination and observes no abnormalities in the outer ear, including a clear external auditory meatus and an intact, healthy tympanic membrane. The audiologist administers a hearing test to the student and finds a slight to mild sensorineural hearing loss in the high frequencies in both ears. During case history, the student reports that the ringing in her ears is occasional and is worse after listening to her music. The audiologist informs the student that she has experienced a noise-induced hearing loss. The audiologist explains how listening to music at loud levels for long periods of time has damaged her hearing, causing a permanent hearing loss.
    [Show full text]
  • Auditory Fatigue Model Applications to Predict Noise Induced Hearing Loss in Human and Chinchilla Pengfei Sun Southern Illinois University Carbondale
    Southern Illinois University Carbondale OpenSIUC Department of Electrical and Computer Articles Engineering Fall 12-20-2016 Auditory fatigue model applications to predict noise induced hearing loss in human and chinchilla Pengfei Sun Southern Illinois University Carbondale Daniel Fox Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Kathleen Campbell Southern Illinois University Springfield Jun Qin Southern Illinois University Carbondale, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/ece_articles Recommended Citation Sun, Pengfei, Fox, Daniel, Campbell, Kathleen and Qin, Jun. "Auditory fatigue model applications to predict noise induced hearing loss in human and chinchilla." Applied Acoustics 119, No. C (Fall 2016): 57-65. doi:10.1016/j.apacoust.2016.12.007. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at OpenSIUC. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles by an authorized administrator of OpenSIUC. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Auditory Fatigue Model Applications to Predict Noise Induced Hearing Loss in Human and Chinchilla Pengfei Suna, Daniel Foxb, Kathleen Campbellb, Jun Qina,∗ aDepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, USA 62901 bDepartment of Medical Microbiology, Immunology, and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Southern Illinois University, Springfield, IL, 62794. Abstract Noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) remains a severe health problem worldwide. Current noise metrics and modeling have assessment limitations on gradually developing NIHL (GDNIHL). In this study, we applied a complex velocity level (CVL) auditory fatigue model to quantitatively assess the impact of basilar membrane (BM) movement on GDNIHL. The transfer functions of chinchilla and human auditory systems, including the triple-path nonlinear (TRNL) fil- ters to simulate the inner ear responses, are applied to obtain BM velocity distribution.
    [Show full text]
  • Appendix G: Biological Resource Methods
    Appendix G: Biological Resource Methods NORTHWEST TRAINING AND TESTING FINAL EIS/OEIS OCTOBER 2015 TABLE OF CONTENTS APPENDIX G BIOLOGICAL RESOURCE METHODS ........................................................................... G-1 G.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING EFFECTS FROM SOUND-PRODUCING ACTIVITIES ........................ G-1 G.1.1 FLOWCHART ..................................................................................................................................... G-2 G.1.2 STIMULI ........................................................................................................................................... G-5 G.1.3 PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES ................................................................................................................ G-5 G.1.3.1 Trauma ...................................................................................................................................... G-5 G.1.3.2 Auditory Fatigue ........................................................................................................................ G-7 G.1.3.3 Auditory and Communication Masking ..................................................................................... G-8 G.1.3.4 Physiological Stress ................................................................................................................... G-8 G.1.4 BEHAVIORAL RESPONSES .................................................................................................................... G-9 G.1.4.1 Trauma and Auditory
    [Show full text]
  • Hair Cell Transduction, Tuning, and Synaptic Transmission in the Mammalian Cochlea
    Hair Cell Transduction, Tuning, and Synaptic Transmission in the Mammalian Cochlea Robert Fettiplace*1 ABSTRACT Sound pressure fluctuations striking the ear are conveyed to the cochlea, where they vibrate the basilar membrane on which sit hair cells, the mechanoreceptors of the inner ear. Recordings of hair cell electrical responses have shown that they transduce sound via submicrometer deflections of their hair bundles, which are arrays of interconnected stereocilia containing the mechanoelec- trical transducer (MET) channels. MET channels are activated by tension in extracellular tip links bridging adjacent stereocilia, and they can respond within microseconds to nanometer displace- ments of the bundle, facilitated by multiple processes of Ca2+-dependent adaptation. Studies of mouse mutants have produced much detail about the molecular organization of the stereocilia, the tip links and their attachment sites, and the MET channels localized to the lower end of each tip link. The mammalian cochlea contains two categories of hair cells. Inner hair cells relay acoustic information via multiple ribbon synapses that transmit rapidly without rundown. Outer hair cells are important for amplifying sound-evoked vibrations. The amplification mechanism primarily in- volves contractions of the outer hair cells, which are driven by changes in membrane potential and mediated by prestin, a motor protein in the outer hair cell lateral membrane. Different sound fre- quencies are separated along the cochlea, with each hair cell being tuned to a narrow frequency range; amplification sharpens the frequency resolution and augments sensitivity 100-fold around the cell’s characteristic frequency. Genetic mutations and environmental factors such as acoustic overstimulation cause hearing loss through irreversible damage to the hair cells or degeneration of inner hair cell synapses.
    [Show full text]
  • The Effect of Noise Exposure on Auditory Threshold, Otoacoustic Emissions, and Electrocochleography
    THE EFFECT OF NOISE EXPOSURE ON AUDITORY THRESHOLD, OTOACOUSTIC EMISSIONS, AND ELECTROCOCHLEOGRAPHY by Alyson Butler LAke, B.S., Au.D. July 2016 DIrector of DIssertAtIon: Andrew StuArt, Ph.D. Major DepArtment: CommunIcatIon Sciences And DIsorders NoIse exposure Is the second leAdIng cause of AcquIred sensorineural heAring loss And Is one of the most common occupAtIonAl And enVIronmentAl hAzards. ExaminIng chAnges In behAVIoral thresholds hAs long been the stAndArd for detectIon And monItoring of noIse-Induced heAring loss (NIHL). It hAs been suggested thAt electrocochleography (ECochG) could be An AddItIonAl tool for Assessing NIHL. OtoAcoustIc emissions (OAEs) proVIde objectIve InformatIon on the Integrity of outer hAIr cell (OHC) functIon And hAve Also been suggested for eVAluAtIng dAmage due to noIse overexposure. The broAd experimentAl questIon wAs: WhAt Is the effect of short- term nArrowbAnd noIse exposure, As A functIon of eAr And gender, on cochleAr functIon As meAsured wIth behAVIoral, ECochG, And OAE IndIces? In Experiment 1, It wAs of Interest to fIrst examine the relIAbIlIty of ECochG electrode type (i.e., Lilly-TM WIck vs. TIPtrode™) at two stImulus rates (i.e., 7.7/s vs. 77.7/s). Electrode And rate were stAtIstIcally signIfIcant (p < .001) predIctors of SP And AP responses (i.e., responses were more Apt to be present when recorded wIth the wIck electrode At the slow rate). Test-retest relIAbIlIty wAs examined wIth correlAtIon coeffIcients, lIneAr mixed model AnAlyses of VAriAnce, test-retest dIfferences, And BlAnd-Altman plots. There were stAtIstIcally signIfIcant correlAtIons (p < .05) between InItIAl test And retest for All ECochG IndIces (i.e., summatIng potentIAl [SP] AmplItude, ActIon potentIAl [AP] lAtency, AP AmplItude, SP/AP AmplItude ratIo, And SP/AP AreA ratIo) when using A LIlly TM-WIck electrode And for All ECochG IndIces except SP AmplItude when testIng wIth A TIPtrode™.
    [Show full text]
  • Current Insights in Noise-Induced Hearing Loss: a Literature Review of the Underlying Mechanism, Pathophysiology, Asymmetry, and Management Options Trung N
    Le et al. Journal of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery (2017) 46:41 DOI 10.1186/s40463-017-0219-x REVIEW Open Access Current insights in noise-induced hearing loss: a literature review of the underlying mechanism, pathophysiology, asymmetry, and management options Trung N. Le†, Louise V. Straatman†, Jane Lea* and Brian Westerberg Abstract Background: Noise-induced hearing loss is one of the most common forms of sensorineural hearing loss, is a major health problem, is largely preventable and is probably more widespread than revealed by conventional pure tone threshold testing. Noise-induced damage to the cochlea is traditionally considered to be associated with symmetrical mild to moderate hearing loss with associated tinnitus; however, there is a significant number of patients with asymmetrical thresholds and, depending on the exposure, severe to profound hearing loss as well. Main body: Recent epidemiology and animal studies have provided further insight into the pathophysiology, clinical findings, social and economic impacts of noise-induced hearing loss. Furthermore, it is recently shown that acoustic trauma is associated with vestibular dysfunction, with associated dizziness that is not always measurable with current techniques. Deliberation of the prevalence, treatment and prevention of noise-induced hearing loss is important and timely. Currently, prevention and protection are the first lines of defence, although promising protective effects are emerging from multiple different pharmaceutical agents, such as steroids, antioxidants
    [Show full text]
  • Ultrastructural Analysis of Odontocete Cochlea
    Laboratori d’Aplicacions Bioacústiques Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Ultrastructural analysis of Odontocete cochlea Thesis presented by MARIA MORELL YBARZ to obtain the Doctoral degree This thesis was supervised by: Dr. MICHEL ANDRÉ (Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics, Technical University of Catalonia-Barcelona Tech) and Dr. MARC LENOIR (Inserm, U. 1051, Institut des Neurosciences de Montpellier) Vilanova i la Geltrú, May 4, 2012 1 Ultrastructural analysis of Odontocete cochlea Acknowlegdements ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is the result of many years of research at the Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics (LAB, Technical University of Catalonia-Barcelona Tech) and it received the collaboration, help and effort of many people. First of all I would like to thank my supervisors, Michel André and Marc Lenoir for their unconditional support. Michel, thanks for giving me the opportunity to perform this research, standing by me when I needed, both personally and professionally, transmitting this passion, energy and encouragement with which you pervade those around you. Marc, thank you very much for everything you taught me so patiently, for your invaluable help and for being so positive about our work. This study and objectives were initiated by Michel André and Eduard Degollada. Eduard originally developed some of the protocols we used in this thesis. Thanks for all your ideas, advice and experience. I would also like to thank our colleagues and the stranding organizations who helped us in collecting the ears, especially Thierry
    [Show full text]
  • Auditory Fatigue Among Call Dispatchers Working with Headsets
    ORIGINAL PAPER International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health 2018;31(2):217 – 226 https://doi.org/10.13075/ijomeh.1896.01131 AUDITORY FATIGUE AMONG CALL DISPATCHERS WORKING WITH HEADSETS THOMAS VENET1, AYOUB BEY2, PIERRE CAMPO1, JOËL DUCOURNEAU3, QUENTIN MIFSUD3, CHARLES HOFFMANN2, AURÉLIE THOMAS1, MARC MOUZÉ-AMADY4, and CÉCILE PARIETTI-WINKLER2,5 1 National Research and Safety Institute for the Prevention of Occupational Accidents and Diseases (INRS), Vandoeuvre, France Ototoxicity and Neurotoxicity Laboratory 2 Central Hospital, Nancy, France 3 Lorraine University, Nancy, France Hearing Aid Unit, Faculty of Pharmacy 4 National Research and Safety Institute for the Prevention of Occupational Accidents and Diseases (INRS), Vandoeuvre, France Physiology, Movement and Work Laboratory 5 Lorraine University, Nancy, France DevAH – EA 3450 Laboratory Abstract Objectives: To determine whether call center dispatchers wearing headsets are subject to auditory fatigue at the end of a work shift. Material and Methods: Data was gathered at times when call centers were busiest. All call operators wore a headset for up to 12 h. Acoustic environment and noise exposure under the headset were continuously recorded during the entire work shift. Variations in auditory parameters were assessed using pure-tone air-conduction audiometry and an objective test based on distortion product otoacoustic emissions – contralateral suppression of distortion product otoacous- tic emission (DPOAE) amplitudes (EchoScan test). Thirty-nine operators and 16 controls, all volunteers, were selected from 3 call centers (sales, assistance, and emergency) where all cognitive tasks were accomplished by phone and on comput- ers. Results: No acoustic shock was detected during the investigation. The highest normalized noise exposure (daily noise exposure level – LEX,8 h) measured was 75.5 dBA.
    [Show full text]