Loudness and acoustic parameters of popular children's toys.
OBJECTIVE
This project was conducted to evaluate the loudness and acoustic parameters of toys designed for children. In addition, we investigated whether occluding the toys' speaker with tape would result in a significant loudness reduction; thereby potentially reducing the risk of noise induced hearing loss.


METHODS
Twenty-six toys were selected after an initial screening at two national retailers. Noise amplitudes at 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8kHz were measured using a digital sound level meter at a distance of 0 and 30cm. The toys' speakers were then occluded using adhesive tape and the same acoustic parameters were re-measured.


RESULTS
Mean maximum noise amplitude of the toys at 0cm and 30cm was 104dBA (range, 97-125dBA) and 76dBA (range, 67-86dBA), respectively. Mean maximum noise amplitude after occlusion at 0cm and 30cm distances was 88dBA (range, 73-110dBA) and 66dBA (range, 55-82dBA), respectively, with a p-value <0.001.


CONCLUSIONS
Proper use of the loudest toys at a distant of 30cm between the speaker and the child's ear will likely not pose a risk of noise-induced hearing loss. However, since most toys are used at closer distances, use of adhesive tape is recommended as an effective modification to decrease the risk of hearing loss.
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Yaser
Y
Ghavami
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Jay
J
Bhatt
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Marlon
M
Maducdoc
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Amy
A
Yau
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Hossein
H
Mahboubi
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Kasra
K
Ziai
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States.
Harrison W
HW
Lin
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery and Biomedical Engineering (HRD), University of California, Irvine, 19182 Jamboree Road, Irvine, CA 92697, United States. Electronic address: hdjalili@uci.edu.
Hamid R
HR
Djalilian
D000162:Acoustics; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006317:Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009622:Noise; D010988:Play and Playthings
Hearing loss; Noise induced hearing loss; Toys