Between Fourth of July fireworks, outdoor concerts and working on home repair projects, travel nursing professionals are well aware of the harmful decibel levels summer brings. All of these activities can pose a threat to hearing if you don't take the proper measures to protect yourself.
About 10 percent of Americans suffer from hearing loss that impacts their ability to understand normal speech. Though aging is the most common cause, excessive noise can also do damage.
"Once hearing is damaged, it cannot be repaired," Jyoti Bhayani, a certified audiologist at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital of Loyola University Health System, said in a Loyola news release.
Sounds can be harmful even for a brief time. These sounds can damage sensitive structures in the inner ear and cause noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). While initial noise exposure results in loss of high-frequency, or high-pitched, sounds, repeated exposure takes a toll on a range of frequencies.
"Hearing loss due to excessive noise is totally preventable, unlike hearing loss due to old age or a medical condition," Bhayani added.
Damage from decibels
As those individuals on travel nursing assignments know, sound is measured in units called decibels. Sounds of less than 75 decibels pose no threat for hearing loss. However, long or repeated exposure to sounds above 85 decibels can damage hearing. Thus, earplugs are recommended for prolonged exposure to anything over 85 decibels. This includes:
- lawnmowers and shop tools at 90 dBs
- chainsaws and drills at 100 dBs
- power saws at 110 dBs
- loud rock concerts at 115 dBs
- race cars at 130 dBs
- fireworks and jet engine takeoffs at 150 dBs
Over the July of Fourth holiday weekend, millions of Americans will experience the sights and sounds of fireworks. But to keep your ears safe, be sure to bring earplugs for you and your friends. It's a good idea to keep them in your purse, backpack or briefcase so you can use them whenever necessary. If you don't have earplugs handy, you can use your hands to cover your ears.
Ear buds
For younger generations, ear buds create a major threat to hearing.
"Three in five Americans, especially youth, are prone to develop hearing loss due to loud music being delivered via ear buds," Bhayani explained. "Hearing aids have yet to become status symbols so young people need to wise up and turn the volume down on their ear buds."
Travel nursing professionals of all ages may experience NIHL. In fact, according to the National Institutes of Health, approximately 15 percent of Americans between the ages of 20 and 69 have hearing loss that may have been triggered by noise at work or during leisure activities. It can be immediate or it can take a long time until becoming noticeable. What's more, it can be temporary or permanent.
For those who ride the train or subway to work, it might be worthwhile to invest in a pair of noise-cancelling headphones, since we tend to turn up the volume of regular ear buds to compensate for the train's roar.
People who have suffered from NIHL may have tinnitus, an intermittent or constant ringing noise in their ears. Tinnitus isn't a condition itself but a symptom of an underlying problem such as ear injury or hearing loss. In the U.S., almost 36 million people have tinnitus or head noises.
Swimmer's ear
Besides fireworks, swimmer's ear is another condition that individuals might have this summer. It is caused by painful membrane swelling due to trapped moisture in the outer ear. If you or your patients want to avoid this, there are multicolor customized plugs for swimming available.