Hidden Hearing Loss from Everyday Noise

Jackhammers, concerts and other common noisemakers may cause irreparable damage to our ears in unexpected ways

By THIS IS A PREVIEW.or to access the full article.Already a subscriber or purchased this issue?

Football fans of the Seattle Seahawks and the Kansas City Chiefs routinely compete at home games to set the Guinness World Record for the noisiest stadium. On October 1, 2014, the Chiefs hit the latest peak: 142.2 decibels (dB). That level is like the painful, blistering roar of a jet engine at 100 feet—a typical example that hearing experts give for a noise that is more than loud enough to cause hearing damage. After the game, the fans were ecstatic. They reveled in the experience, noting the ringing in their ears or the feeling that their eardrums were about to explode. What was happening inside their ears was far from wonderful, however.

A hearing test, if administered before and immediately after the game, might have shown a marked deterioration. The softest sound that a fan could have heard before kickoff—say, whispered words—might no longer be detectable by halftime. The thresholds for hearing might have risen by as much as 20 to 30 dB by the final whistle. As the ringing in fans' ears subsided over the course of a few days, the output of the hearing test, an audiogram, might well return to baseline, as the ability to hear faint sounds returned.

THIS IS A PREVIEW.or to access the full article.Already a subscriber or purchased this issue? Buy Digital Issue$5.99 Digital Issue + Subscription$39.99 You May Also Like

Scientific American Single Issue

Scientific American Single Issue

Mysteries of the Ancient Ones

Becoming Human