A study of hearing acuity and health of the external auditory canal in earphone users

Abstract

Noise-induced hearing loss as seen in today’s young generation is primarily due to long-duration exposure to personal listening devices like earphones, headphones, earbuds, and other different types of personal listening devices. With the rise in internet usage, online education as well as online gaming, the use of personal listening devices has increased fourfold. The exposure to noise above 85 dB for a long duration is the most common cause of reduced hearing acuity. Normally the earphones and headphones tend to produce the volume of 78 to 136 dB. Hence continuous exposure to such amplitudes may cause hearing loss especially in adolescents. However the new feature of noise cancellation in earphones and headphones is said to reduce the cases of noise induced hearing loss by decreasing the ambient noises, thus leading to better hearing in low volumes even in crowded or noisy places. It is also seen that with continuous usage of earphones there are increased incidences of otomycosis and increased cerumen production as well. This study aims to establish a relationship between hearing loss and affects on health of external auditory canal in earphone users if any.