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Dr. Wainscott practices with Dr. Karl Studtmann at West Tennessee ENT Clinic, 619 Skyline Drive. Both are board certified. For an appointment, call 731-424-3682 or 800-372-8394.
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Cure for hearing loss is protection now
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| Dr. Keith Wainscott holds an ear plug, left, and an analog hearing aid in his other hand. Hearing aids come in many sizes, including sizes that are smaller than the one Dr. Wainscott is holding. |
In his other hand, he held earplugs, which he considers even more important than the hearing aid.
“The best cure for hearing loss is to prevent it in the first place,” says Dr. Wainscott, a board-certified otolaryngologist at West Tennessee ENT Clinic. Whenever people are around loud noises, whether that be chain saws, lawn mowers, rifle shots when hunting, or even music at rock concerts, they should protect their hearing with ear plugs. Even a movie theater can be too loud.
Hearing loss is largely preventable, says Dr. Wainscott, who has been practicing medicine in Jackson for 18 years.
For many people, however, the damage has been done. “We have a whole crop of baby boomers who listened to loud rock music all those years and now have loss of hearing.”
People should be careful about the volume and the length of exposure to loud noise, he explains. The volume of sound is measured in decibels (dB). Sounds louder than 80dB are potentially harmful.
Shooting a rifle next to your ear could cause an immediate loss of some hearing. On the other hand, working with a chain saw or other power tool, driving a tractor in an open cab, or listening to loud music can cause a gradual, almost imperceptible loss of hearing.
By middle age, he says, people begin to notice that they can hear a conversation, but they can’t understand what is being said, or they may have trouble hearing if there is background noise, or they may accuse their spouse of mumbling. “After years of speaking clearly, the spouse just didn’t start to mumble. It’s probably hearing loss.” Other symptoms of hearing loss are ringing in the ears or a humming sound.
People can have permanent hearing loss from situations throughout their lives, Dr. Wainscott explains. About one in 1,000 people are born with deafness in one ear. Ear infections, a common problem with toddlers, can cause hearing loss if fluid buildup in the ears is not treated or if the fluid remains over several months. Some illnesses, such as meningitis, can cause hearing loss.
Hearing loss in teen-agers and young adults is not that common, he says, but those are the years many people develop bad habits that affect their hearing, such as listening to loud music. Today’s electronics have improved to make music even louder, he adds.
Adults in the workforce should follow safety rules and protect their ears when OSHA and other safety agencies suggest it. The work place has gotten safer; most workers exposed to loud machinery these days do wear ear protection, he adds.
And, as we age, all of us begin to lose some hearing. “You can’t stop the aging process and you can’t regain hearing you’ve already lost,” Dr. Wainscott said. “But you can protect your ears from noise exposure.”
According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, you should avoid a noise or protect your ears in situations when…
• You must raise your voice to be heard.
• You can’t hear someone two feet away from you.
• Speech around you sounds muffled or dull after leaving a noise area.
• You have pain or ringing in your ears (tinnitus) after exposure to noise.
Dr. Wainscott recommends earplugs or earmuffs that offer 25-28 dB protection. He wears them himself whenever he uses a power tool, goes hunting or even attends a rock concert. He knows that when he was younger, he damaged his own hearing when he worked around loud construction noise and listened to loud music without protecting his hearing. People who suspect they have hearing loss should come to the doctor to have their hearing tested. A good hearing test is done in a soundproof room and measures your hearing against different frequencies of sound. If you have hearing loss, you can choose from a wide range of digital and analog hearing aids to improve your hearing.
“However,” Dr. Wainscott says, “if you can prevent the hearing loss to begin with – that’s the best. If exposure to a loud noise now means you can’t hear when you get older, it takes out a lot of the enjoyment of what you are doing.”