To Geoff on hearing protection

DIANE HOFSTETTER dianepianotuner at msn.com
Mon Jun 12 01:14:31 MDT 2006



Needless to say I was extremely disappointed in my results. But, as an
excuse, I have old crappy headphones, live next to a busy street and there
is street construction going outside. I plan to find some decent headphones
and try it again in a quiet place, but I don't expect significantly
different results. (- sigh -) Fortunately the top note on a piano, (C8), is
only around 4186 Hz. Well below where my HF degradation started to kick in.
(Whew!) Still...

Enjoy. I expect reports.

-- Geoff Sykes
-- Assoc. Los Angeles


Geoff,

I was trying to find this post again, when I wrote the last one.  Finally I 
got it and want to mention something else.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Congratulations on finding a way to start taking charge of your own hearing 
conservation program!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The first step is to monitor your hearing regularly( keep a record of the 
results), the second is to learn what your findings mean,  the third is to 
learn how to protect it and the fourth is to protect it.

Your high frequency degredation-----how high is it?-----is usually an early 
warning sign of hearing loss caused either by ototoxicity (things that are 
toxic to our ears, such as certain medicines or chemicals), or by noise (any 
too loud sound).

There is another way to have the ultra high frequencies tested--it's called 
testing for DPOAE's, or Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions.  It's a 
test that audiologists do that measure a sound that is caused by the outer 
hair cells of the cochlea and emitted out of the ear, when two frequencies 
are introduced into the ear.

So, when anyone goes to an audiologist, who will probably only test your 
hearing to 8000Hz. with their audiometer, you can ask them to test the 
DPOAE's for higher frequency results.  Be sure and tell them to test the 
extended high frequency range.

I gave a class on hearing to the Portland chapter, PTG several years before 
moving here.  In it I mentioned medicines that are ototoxic.  A short while 
after joining the Portland chapter, one of the members came to me and 
thanked me.  He said that, as a result of my former talk, he had gone to his 
doctor and told him to take him off the quinine that he was taking for leg 
cramps.  He said that within four days his tinnitus had stopped and his 
hearing had returned to normal.

Knowledge is power.
Diane




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