Doctors say constantly being plugged into music with earphones on leads to hearing loss and long-term deafness
It's a common sight. Youngsters in trains or in the metro listening to music being piped into their ears with colourful earphones. That right there is a red flag, but the sight is so ordinary that nothing about it appears to be harmful.
Speak to an ear-nose-throat (ENT) specialists and they'll tell you just how common noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) has become over the last few years. ENT surgeon Dr Christopher E de Souza recalls the case of a 25-year-old whose hearing ability was reduced to that of an octogenarian. "The boy had his earphones on every night with the music playing until the battery ran out," says Dr de Souza, who practices at Mumbai's Holy Family Hospital.
"The ear drum operates like a vibrating reel. A high-frequency acoustic filter, called the tragus, cuts out frequencies that can be harmful to the ear drum. But when sound is pumped directly into the ear, it compromises the tragus, and can lead to noise-induced hearing loss."
NIHL is characterised by an inability to hear sibilant sounds. "Instead of hearing 'slap', the person may hear 'lap'. NIHL sufferers may also be unable to understand speech or hear a constant buzzing or a ringing sound," adds Dr de Souza.
Dr Anita Babtiwala, a practising ENT specialist for the past 15 years,says that NIHL has been around for the past five years, but the number of sufferers have increased over the past two years. "In one month alone I consult 40-50 patients with this condition," she says. "It can be caused due to constant exposure to loud sounds such as DJing or to festival music. However, the problem is aggravated with consistently listening to music with earphones. Many who have a hearing problem may be unaware of it because there is no pain in the ear."
She advises incessant music listeners to visit an ENT specialist while another expert, Dr Lubina Sayed, says, "Ask someone to speak while you have your music playing over the earphones. If you can't hear them, you must turn the volume down, and if you can hear comfortably, then that's your safety zone." Dr Nayan Shetty, ENT, Wockhardt Hospital.
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