Loud music can hit wrong note for DJs
9:27am Friday 10th February 2012 in News
AN INCREASING number of young people are being left with tinnitus after listening to loud music through headphones.
Now experts at the Royal Bolton Hospital’s audiology unit are urging people to take steps to protect their hearing.
The call comes as part of Tinnitus Awarness Week, which aims to help and advise people on the condition.
GPs are also being advised to make referrals to the hospital earlier for people with tinnitus.
Tinnitus causes a ringing in the ears without there being any external sound.
The noise can be low, medium or high pitched and can be continuous or come and go.
Laura Culbert, advanced practitioner of audiology at Royal Bolton Hospital in Minerva Road, Farnworth, said: “Tinnitus can be all sorts of different sounds.
“It can be musical thudding, ringing or some people experience high pitched buzzing.
“When people come in we do an assessment then a hearing test and further investigations just to check there is nothing medically wrong. Children can get tinnitus but they are seen by paediatricians.
We see people aged from 16 and up.
“We have seen a few DJs. If they don’t wear ear protection they will get noise-induced hearing loss.
“We find sometimes that people who suffer from anxiety and depression get raised levels of tinnitus.
“If people focus on the sound it becomes a problem. Problems can sometimes be linked to exposure to loud noises but people of all ages can suffer.”
Around 10 per cent of the population are said to have tinnitus all of the time, according to the British Tinnitus Association.
People who get help from the audiology department can be given a form of hearing aid, which plays a low sound and can act like sound therapy.
Other methods can be used to take the brain’s focus away from the noise they are hearing.
■ Action on Hearing Loss (formerly RNID) wants young music lovers to share their experiences on listening to loud music for a chance to win noise cancelling headphones worth £80.
Visit svy.mk/MP3 survey for more information.
