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More on the Malady of Tinnitus: prevention, hearing protection devices, custom ear molds
Part 2 |
How do you prevent Tinnitus?
As we mentioned in Part 1, Tinnitus may be caused by sudden noise trauma/and or continued noise trauma to the cochlea. So, how does one go about preventing tinnitus in the first place?
Noise is all around us. Our auditory system gets assaulted with various offending noisy devices on a daily basis. Dangerous noise levels are known to be above 85 dB. It isn't possible to avoid louder levels all the time. Boom boxes that drive up next to you in the drive through, surround sound at the movies, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, vacuum cleaners, etc. On and on, we are confronted with situations that are difficult to avoid at times. There even are folks who assault their ears on purpose—ipods, rock concerts, arcades—with total disregard that they will one day be walking into our office, desperate for hearing help!
Practically speaking, however, sticking our fingers in our ears isn't the best solution out there. Today, there are a wide variety of hearing protectors available on the market. How does one go about choosing the "right" ones?
Choosing the best hearing protection devices
Well, first, they must fit snugly and be comfortable. Oftentimes people try to get by with the foam protectors. They're great in a pinch (pun intended!), but they don't always block the sound enough, and they can work their way out of the ear canal. Sometimes this is because they were inserted incorrectly. The foam earplugs must be rolled tightly, and then one needs to pull up on the pinna, or top part of the ear, to allow the canal to open enough to insert the foam plug snugly. Still, this is not the best solution for fit, comfort, and noise blockage ... but it's better than nothing at all.
What does NRR mean?
Sometimes people get confused by all the technical stuff. The NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) that is required to appear on all hearing protection devices is only a guideline. These ratings are achieved in ideal laboratory situations, and don't take into account factors such as fit and comfort. Usually, devices with an NRR rating of 29 or more provide the greatest protection; those with a rating of 16 and less provide moderate protection. For common recreational purposes, other than shooting and rock concerts, the lower ratings can provide adequate protection.
The following are various situations and their decibel levels:
| Activity | Noise Level in Decibels |
Noisy Restaurant
Shop Tools
Lawn Mower
Heavy Traffic (50 ft)
Motorcycle
Chain Saw
Leaf Blower
Rock Concert
Busy Video Arcade
Symphony Concert
Football Game
Band Concert
Dance Club
Jet Takeoff (200 ft)
Factory installed Car Stereo
Stock car races
Jackhammer/Power Drill
Gunshot
Firecracker
Balloon popping
Fireworks (3 ft)
Rifle
Handgun
Shotgun
| 85
90
90
90
95-110
110-125
110
110-120
110
110
117
120
120
120
125
130
130
140
150
157
162
163
166
170 |
Advantage of wearing custom earmolds
Custom earmolds are more expensive, but if one works in a habitually noisy environment, or has a very noisy hobby, they are worth the investment. An audiologist or hearing instrument specialist can provide these devices for you. They will do a visible check of your ear canal, then take an impression of your canal and send it to a reputable lab where your custom earmold is fashioned. There are various earmolds customized for a variety of situations and needs, including medical/dental, communication (TV, radio, etc.), recreation, musicians, shooters, even earplugs for sleeping! Ride a motorcycle? Play in an orchestra? Listen to loud music? Put a plug in it!! There are custom earmolds for all these situations. They work, and they will preserve your hearing health!
Remember:
- If immediately following exposure to a loud noise, your tinnitus seems worse, or you suddenly find that you have tinnitus, you will know the noise was too loud for your ears.
- If you experience regular exposures to those kinds of noise levels, then you will do permanent damage to your hearing and/or find that you have an increase in your tinnitus.
Keep your hearing protection devices with you, as you would a pair of sunglasses. Selecting and purchasing a hearing protection device is the first step to hearing protection and tinnitus prevention—having it on hand when you really need it, and using it when needed is the key!! |
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| (Article 0706, Part 2. Originally published July 2006) |
[page 2 of 8]
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