[Decrease of hearing acuity from use of portable headphones].
The association between headphone use and hearing acuity was studied among 155 medical students aged 22-29 years. Hearing levels were measured and subjects were classified into three groups: A: n = 14), off-line or portable headphone users (group B: n = 16), and the control group. Past or present headphone use frequency for group A and B is two or more times per week, with an average duration of 30-120 minutes per use. No significant differences between mean hearing acuity of the three groups were found by one-way analysis of variance. After standardization of the average hearing acuity of the control group to 0 dB, group A or B levels were plotted for each of the octave band frequencies. The mean hearing acuity at 4,000 Hz of group B showed a tendency of being lower than that of the control group. Further, percentages of group B members whose hearing acuity decreased 15, 25, 30 dB or more were significantly larger than those of the control. These results suggest that more than 10% of the young generation is at risk for damaged hearing acuity from use of portable headphones.
Kawada
T
T
Department of Public Health, Gunma University School of Medicine.
Koyama
H
H
Suzuki
S
S
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing; D006317:Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male