Week 1, Fall 2007
On Tuesday, I saw one client who was an avid hunter. He was visiting the clinic in order to obtain custom ear protection in order to preserve his hearing during recreational shooting. At the time of the visit, the client did not wish to have his hearing evaluated, but he stated that he had no difficulty hearing in normal listening situations. No previous head or neck surgeries or other outstanding case history information were noted.
Otoscopy revealed minimal cerumen bilaterally in the lateral portion of the external auditory canals (EACs). Slight redness was noted in the right EAC, but, otherwise, the EACs were normal bilaterally. Tympanic membranes were visible and intact bilaterally.
Two sets of bilateral earmold impressions were taken at the time of the visit. The client ordered custom ear protection with a "sonic valve" designed specifically for hunters. The supervisor also discussed with the client the efficacy of ear protection during shooting and hunting.
The following article "Firearms and Hearing Protection" describes the efficacy of several types of hearing protection, including electronic hearing protection. The authors found the peak SPLs of several different firearms and compared the effects of various ear protectors. Measurements of the protected and unprotected noise levels at the ear were made while different hearing protectors were put on the mannequins. The effectivess of the different ear protectors were compared to each other. Then, NIOSH formulas for allowable noise exposure were calculated. The authors found that electronic hearing protectors alone could not respond quickly enough to attenuate enough sound to prevent inner ear damage. However, when electronic ear protectors and standard foam ear plugs were used together, gunfire was attenuated to safe levels.
But ... Would you wear double ear protection in the woods in WV???
http://www.hearingreview.com/issues/articles/2007-03_06.asp
Here is the link for the attenuation information for the type of custom electronic ear protection that my client ordered.
http://www2a.cdc.gov/hp-devices/selectprd.asp?PgName=EarPlug&Company=Westone+Laboratories&prodname=Westone&model=39
For a comparison, here is the link for the attenuation information for a swimmers' earplug.
http://www2a.cdc.gov/hp-devices/selectprd.asp?PgName=EarPlug&Company=Westone+Laboratories&prodname=Westone&model=AquaNot
Check out the NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) on each!
posted by KaraMar10 @ 10:49 PM
2 Comments:
First of all, I would definitely not wear double hearing protection in the woods of WV. Compromising your life for hearing is big topic when discussing hearing protection with all of our hunters. I'm also disappointed in the noise reduction rating of the ear plugs that were given. The patient knows best... or at least, thinks he/she knows best.
I was also surprised with the NRR. I anticipated that it would be much better. It is like being stuck between a rock and a hard place when discussing options with hunters. On the one hand, we want them to protect their hearing, but at the same time, we want them to be conscientious about their safety.
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