Hearing Problems
David Marquardt
I've been experiencing some tinnitus (ringing in the ears) the last
couple of years. My hearing is OK and all tests and experiments (diet
change, medication, etc.) have povided no relief. One question that was
asked by the doctor was regarding firing guns. I said no but I play
raquetball and some of the guys I play with murder the ball. She
discounted that as a cause without having a clue how loud a raquetball
court can get. I've been playing for about 3 years and the ringing in
the ears started about 2 years ago. I tried the foam type ear plugs as
an experiment and my resulting play was not good. And, I can't tell if
they help the ringing anyway cuz my ears generally ring all the time.
Can anyone point me to any information or studies on this?
Has anyone experienced hearing problems from raquetball?
This is very frustrating because I love the game but I haven't been able
to eliminate this concern.
--
David M.
john varrill
This is a long overdue subject of discussion. I've been playing for 18
years and while I have not been tested for quite a while, I suspect that
I may have some slight loss of hearing possibly due to the years of
hearing the loud sound of racquetballs hitting the front wall thousands
of times. I have never seen this subject discussed in any racquetball
magazine article in 15 years. Perhaps it is time, if it hasn't been done
yet, for someone to bring a decibel meter into a court and see what the
decibel reading is for hard shots in a typical racquetball match. Has
anyone heard of this ever being done?
Hearing loss is not a pleasant subject, but if it is found that the loud
sound of racquet balls hitting walls can potentially cause hearing loss,
steps can be taken to protect players. First we need to know how loud
the sound is and then we can possibly determine whether exposure to that
decibel level is potentially harmful to hearing.
J.V.
Patrick
Your question is interesting from a hearing perspective. I am an
ameture player, and know how loud the court gets. No one knows for sure
what causes tinnitus. Some medical conditions definitely cause it, as
well as noise exposure. Steve Pazan reports in "ringing in the ears"
that exposure to high frequency noise causes hearing loss and tinnitus.
He also describes the working of the inner ear very well. I disagree
with some of his explanations.
Your doctor asked you about gunfire for a good reason. It is well known
that exposure to gunfire causes hearing loss. The frequency spectrum of
a gunshot, or artillery shot etc. has a wide range of frequencies. It
is not necessarily the frequency of the sound, but the amplitude
(loudness) of the sound that causes the damage. When sound is conducted
into the inner ear, it creates a traveling wave along the hair cells of
the cochlea. Imagine two people swinging a jump rope back and
forth--that is a traveling wave. The louder a sound, the bigger this
wave gets. Bigger waves cause the most damage. Due to the shape of the
cochlea (imagine a snail shell), the cells which respond to higher
frequency sounds suffer the most damage. These sharp sounds created by
gunfire and smahes in racquetball will cause the most damage. The
question is: how loud is the noise on the court? And, How often are you
exposed to it. Damage is probably occurring; however, it is most likely
temporary. The ringing, as you have experienced, is longer lasting.
I would recommend a visit to an ENT (ear-nose-throat doctor, or
oto-rhino-laryngologist) for a medical examination. He will most likely
refer you to an Audiologist (not an audiographer--I don't know what that
is). The Audiologist will counsel you about hearing conservation.
You might want to ask about "musician's ear plugs". These are different
from the foam plugs you buy at your local drug store. They block out
most of the lower frequency sounds which generally have the highest
amplitude, and pass the higher frequency sounds. You can then have
better court awareness and still talk to your opponent! These ear plugs
are used by rock bands and symphony musicians, as well as professional
football players who want to block out crowd noise and hear the voice's
of their teammates.
For more information about tinnitus and other hearing and communication
problems, visit the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association at:
http://www.asha.org/consumers/brochures/tinnitus.htm
Other web sites are available with more information from different
organizations like the American Academy of Audiology (AAA).
Good Luck,
Ken Hart
Graduate Student--Speech and Hearing Science
The Ohio State University
Kenneth
The last post by "Patrick" was actually writen by Ken Hart
nickw...@gmail.com
Nick W.
