Guest article writer  today he knows about a world I am long removed from the club scene and loud music of  entertainment venues. the article has some whiskers but it speaks truth today as it did when Bill clinton still lived in the white house.

 Alexander Chancellor: Most people seem to feel uneasy without noise, tending to equate quiet with loneliness or boredom.

My having gone to a Beatles concert in Bournemouth in 1964 could be the reason why I now wear hearing aids. I still recall the experience with horror. Much as I liked - and still like - the Beatles’ music, nobody could have enjoyed it at this live performance, which took the form of a decibel contest between a screaming mob of fans and a vast loudspeaker system on stage.

I imagine that all Beatles concerts were like that, and that nobody would ever have discovered how good they were if their music had not been recorded in studio conditions for listening to at home.

Yet youth’s addiction to noise for noise’s sake has continued unabated for half a century, and now we learn from the Royal National Institute for Deaf People that 90% of young people suffer damage to their hearing after spending a night out at a club or gig.

The answer, it says, would be for them to wear earplugs; but only 3% of them do so, because most fear that earplugs would block out the music or make them look uncool.

On the one hand, the charity is hoping to persuade them that music doesn’t have to be deafening to be audible - a difficult task, given that sheer volume of noise seems to be at least as necessary to their enjoyment as the music itself.

On the other hand, it wants to make earplugs fashionable by commissioning university students to design ones that look "exciting" rather than "medical"; and with this it could have more success, for glittery earplugs might even catch on as a form of bling.

I have to admit that when I was prescribed hearing aids a couple of years ago, I too was worried about their "medical" appearance. But the specialist pointed out that, since almost every young person now had some kind of electronic device in his or her ear, there was almost no stigma attached to them any more.

This is quite true and makes me think that another way of making earplugs acceptable to the young might be to have wires protruding from them as if they were iPod headphones.

According to the World Health Organization, excessive noise is the main avoidable cause of permanent hearing loss, yet most people seem to feel uncomfortable without it, tending to equate quiet with loneliness or boredom.

As for my hearing aids, they have turned out to be something of a mixed blessing; they make me hear better in conversation, but they make loud noise even more unbearable.

When I was a teenager and already smoking heavily, I would take comfort from the example of Giuseppe di Stefano, the great Italian opera singer who died this week. For di Stefano’s glorious tenor voice - one of the finest of the 20th century - did not appear to be in any way impaired by his addiction to the weed.

Even in the 1950s, when people didn’t yet realize quite how bad cigarettes were for the health, it was thought most inadvisable for a singer to smoke. Yet di Stefano, puffing away, was then at the height of his powers, and so impressed Sir Rudolf Bing, the famous general manager of New York’s Metropolitan Opera, that he wrote of his singing voice: "I shall never as long as I live forget the beauty of that sound."

Di Stefano later freely admitted to having "smoked a lot" and indulged in various other kinds of dissipation, but he always insisted that it wasn’t his disreputable lifestyle but his "severe allergies" that had prematurely ended his career.

Few people believed him, but he did at least survive to the age of 86, and then died only as a delayed consequence of grave head injuries suffered during an attack by burglars four years before (or so his widow has said).

Bing claimed that di Stefano could have been as great a tenor as Caruso if he had been more responsible in his personal conduct, but it must be admitted that, under the circumstances, he did remarkably well.

People who attack the media for withholding the "good news" and instead depressing them with health scares and tales of human depravity should spend more time reading celebrity magazines. For example, the current edition of OK! reveals that David and Victoria Beckham, belying their reputations, lead lives of exemplary domesticity.

"There are so many celebrities going out doing whatever they’re doing and falling out of nightclubs," says Victoria. "But David and I are quite boring. If people really knew the truth about us, they wouldn’t care."

Her "perfect night", she says, "is to stay in with David and watch movies with the kids". His great passion is cooking, and both of them are so happy in each other’s company that they desire almost nothing else.

Even when they are apart, as they are sadly forced to be from time to time, they speak "around 10 times a day, and at least one of those times is an hour long", Victoria says. And her conversations with David are much more meaningful than is popularly imagined. "A lot of people think he is a bit dim, but when you get to know him, he is actually quite deep," she says.

Well, all that is really good to know and warms the cockles of the heart. How shameful of the media to have kept it from us for so long, when all that time they should have been parading the Beckhams as the splendid role models that they now turn out to be!

This week Alexander read Barack Obama’s family memoir, Dreams from My Father, first published in 1995 before he entered politics: "It far surpasses in honesty and interest any modern autobiography of an established politician." He’s also been glued to the presidential election coverage: "I’m dreading more years of worry about what Bill Clinton may be up to in the White House. "

© Guardian News & Media 2008
Published: 3/6/2008

There are a vast number of microscopic sensory hair cells in the the Organ of Corti these hair are very fragile indeed and are easily damaged. In addition to these delicate hairs there are three tiny bones that vibrate and act as amplifiers, these amplifiers do a remarkable job when they are not under assault by excessive noise.
 
When the movement of the tiny bones in the middle ear vibrate the oval window of the cochlea, there are waves that are then created in the fluid surrounding the cochlea. These sound waves bend the basilar membrane in place corresponding to specific frequencies.

The hair cells in those places then brush against the overlying  membrane causing the generation an pulse. It is this pulse which gets sent to the brain. The brain interprets those electrical pulses as sound. 

When the tiny hairs and nerve endings become damaged as a result of exposure to excessive noise, high frequency hearing loss  often results. So the obvious first line of defense limit the noise.

We have touched on excessive exposure to high levels of noise especially over a period of time. I think you might be surprised at how easily your life will get you into a hearing damaging circumstance. Fortunately much of this exposure to excessive noise will cause problems that fade in time once the source of the noise is removed. Below are some  examples of potentially dangerous any day if not everyday exposures to the kind of noise we are talking about. I got these from a simple poll of my own family which includes a couple of high school and a college student. These exposures were experienced in just the last ten days. After you read the exposures that a poll of my own family from just the last month of their lives revealed I hope you will remember to avoid such risks and they will too.

1. high school rally for the basketball team
2. the game itself
3. a party at a friend’s house
4. attendance at a muscle car exhibition
5. several rides on the NYC subway system

 I am sure that if you sit with your family you could come up with a list of your own in no time.

Add to this that many have exposures like these added to a work environment that is excessively noisy and you have a lot of chances for damage to people’s auditory systems. If you are suffering anew from ringing on the ears from noise induced tinnitus do what you can to give the delicate instruments in your hearing system a rest from the assault.

In the event that this is the type of thing you may be experiencing your condition from I thought it might it would be helpful to let you have some information regarding cochlea damage resulting mostly from exposure to excessive or persistent noise.

I hope this  gives you some insight into what actually happens when cochlea damage occurs as a result of exposure to noise.

This type of hearing  loss will be either temporary or permanent depending on a wide variety of factors. See a physician if you think that you may have been impacted negatively by a noise.

There is a vast number of microscopic sensory hair cells in the the Organ of Corti these hair are very fragile indeed and are easily damaged. In addition to these delicate hairs there are three tiny bones that vibrate and act as amplifiers, these amplifiers do a remarkable job when they are not under assault by excessive noise.
 
When the movement of the tiny bones in the middle ear vibrate the oval window of the cochlea, there are waves that are then created in the fluid surrounding the cochlea. These sound waves bend the basilar membrane in place corresponding to specific frequencies.

The hair cells in those places then brush against the overlying  membrane causing the generation an pulse. It is this pulse which gets sent to the brain. The brain interprets those electrical pulses as sound. 

When the tiny hairs and nerve endings become damaged as a result of exposure to excessive noise, high frequency hearing loss and tinnitus often results. So the obvious first line of defense limit the noise.

Temporary Hearing Loss

Temporary hearing loss may be due to various reasons such as earwax accumulation, an exposure to loud sounds or ear infections. Read on to know more about temporary hearing loss, its causes and treatment.

Hearing ability is one of the important senses that the human being has. We can communicate with others, listen to songs and watch movies using this ability. However, some people lose this auditory ability due to certain reasons, which is known as hearing loss. Hearing loss may be temporary or permanent. Temporary hearing loss may result from ear infection, earwax build up or an exposure to loud sounds. Usually, temporary hearing loss is reversible after proper treatment.

Causes of Temporary Hearing Loss

There are various reasons for a temporary loss of hearing ability. Some of the common causes of temporary hearing loss are:

• An exposure to loud sounds is one of the most common causes of temporary hearing loss. It is also known as noise-induced hearing loss. Due to constant exposure to the loud sounds, the sensitive structures in the inner ear get damaged, which results in hearing loss. This type of hearing loss is accompanied by tinnitus, ringing of the ears. If the exposure is continuous and if left untreated, the hearing loss may be untreatable and permanent. If you are exposed to loud environment and you are not able to hear loud speech around 3 feet away, then you can assume that your ears are exposed to dangerous noise levels.
• If there is an ear blockage due to accumulation of earwax, then it can give rise to temporary hearing loss.
• Infections in the middle ear can also cause temporary hearing loss. There may be sudden tear or rupture in the eardrum, which may result in perforation. It may be accompanied by pain and bloody drainage out of the ear. This condition is known as otitis media with perforation.
• Temporary hearing loss may result from damage to the sensory structures (hair cells) of the inner ear, auditory nerve pathway or auditory nerve present in the brain. These sensory structures may get damaged by infections, drugs, skull injuries and tumors.
• Intake of otoxic medicines such as ibuprofen or aspirin for a long period can give rise to temporary hearing loss. This condition cures when you stop taking these drugs.
• Some autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, polyarteritis nodosa and rheumatoid arthritis are also responsible for temporary hearing loss.
• Hearing loss after a viral infection.

How to Treat and Prevent Temporary Hearing Loss?

Temporary hearing loss can be easily treated and reversed. As exposure to loud sound is the main cause of temporary hearing loss, avoid the exposure to loud sounds as much as possible. If you are in the loud environment, protect your ears by wearing the earplugs or other auditory protective devices. Make friends, family and colleagues aware of the hazards of loud sounds. If temporary hearing loss is due to the accumulation of earwax, then you can get it removed from the doctor. The doctor removes the earwax using some solutions or a machine. Regular cleaning of the ears is necessary in order to prevent the accumulation of earwax.

If there is any kind of ear injury, you may have to undergo a surgery. It will help regain your hearing ability. If there are some ear infections, they can be treated with the anti-bacterial solutions and antibiotics. If temporary hearing loss is due to the autoimmune disorder, then it can be treated with corticosteroid under physician supervision. As soon as you are diagnosed for the temporary hearing loss, you should immediately consult the physician and get appropriate treatment in order to prevent further damage to the ears. For every reason of hearing loss, the doctor prescribes different treatments. Temporary hearing loss can also be treated by using a hearing aid.

Nursing interventions for hearing loss of a temporary nature as described here are rarely necessary except in the case of the elderly or therwise seriously infrimed.

American Speech Language Hearing Association

Medline

Hearing Loss Association of America

National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders

National Institute of Health

Liviing with hearing Loss

Cleaning with cotton swabs  can cause damage to the ear structure or can result in pacing the ear wax deeper into the ear causing a blockage and temporary hearing loss.

Types of hearing loss Temporary hearing loss

The most common cause of hearing loss is temporary exposure to loud sounds. More than 30 million Americans are exposed to hazardous sound levels on a regular basis. 

Industrial Deafness & Hearing Loss Compensation

There are mainly four main types of noise-related hearing difficulty: • Temporary hearing loss • Permanent hearing loss • Acoustic trauma • Tinnitus .