title: Noise trauma from air bags.
abstract: Air bags have contributed substantially to the safety of car occupants in road accidents, but concern exists that they may inflate unnecessarily in low speed crashes. Previous articles have reported eye, face, upper limb, and chest injuries caused by air bag inflation. In this report, researchers describe two cases of hearing loss and persistent tinnitus that may have resulted from air bag inflation in low speed collisions. Neither subject sustained other injuries.