INTRODUCTION:
In this so called glittering
modernistic world we are facing a lot of dilemmas of
which this article directs attention towards a new
sprouting curse, the Socioacusis. It wrecks our one of five
senses, Hearing. Upon copious etiologic factors the most
overlooked cause is the use of Headphones. Not just the
use of headphones but the modernistic use. hhich
implies there use as to appear suave, to give an
impression of being busy, having me time, engaging in
online games, covert chatting and a lot more.
What Socioacusis is:
In order to understand Socioacusis we
have to have some knowledge of ear. There are three
parts of ear outer, middle and inner. Socioacusis has
effect on inner ear. So, inner ear has a structure called
chochlea containing hair cells. Hair cells covert sound
vibrations into electrical signals and these electrical
signals through nerves goes to brain and sound is heard.
Know we define socioacusis:”it refers to the hearing loss
that is associated with societal and environmental factors
such as prolonged use of headphones, everyday noice in
urban environments, recreational noice etc”.
How socioacusis effects hearing?
In order to become modern, to look
cool, to hear music and to play online games people use
headphones for long time without having any breaks.
This prolong usage causes;
1.Damage to hear cells: loud sounds for long time
causes the intense vibrations in chochlear fluid and
overstimulates to the hair cells result in damage to
these cells. hhich results in Socioacusis.
2. Exitotoxicity and free radical formation: Prolonged
exposure of loud sound causes the release of
glutamate a neurotransmitter which starts a pathway
leading towards the hair cells damage. Because of
prolonged noise exposure there is increase in
metabolic activity causing the production of toxic
free radicals which adversely effects the inner ear.
3. Inflammatory process: the damaging noise
stimulates and inflammatory response in inner ear
which further worsens the condition.
4. Damage to neural pathway: Nerves are those
structures which brings the signals towards and away
from brain. Prolong noise exposure damages the
auditory nerve thus adding salt to wound. Impairing
the hearing permanently.
5.Apoptosis: Because of chronic use of headphones
the hair cells of inner ear under goes apoptosis
which is a programmed cell death.
Determinants of damage:
.Sound intensity which is the measure of energy
by the sound waves in simple words how loud a sound is.
and it is measured in decibels (dB). So, sound of intensity
80-85 (dB) have contributed towards socioscusis.
.On Noise spectrum the medium and high
spectrums have worst effects. Means they causes
negative impact on inner ear.
.Time is the most important factor contributing
towards socioacusis. People who wears headphones for
long time without taking any rest or needed rest suffers a
lot. As a result stapedius and tenser tympani muscles are
unable to adopt such pressure and loses there function.
Leading towards socioacusis.
Patient’s representation:
They came with the history of continuous use of
headphones for long time, hearing loud music etc. Having
the feeling of ear fullness which irritates a lot. Suffering
with tinnitus a condition in which without any external
sound source patient perceives bussing, humming and
ringing. The intensities of which varies patient to patient.
Also tells the history of headache. On audiogram we
observe a decrease in threshold of hearing after exposure
to noise which after returns normal with it there is
hearing threshold drops to 4kHz frequency which returns
to normal after rest. Other representations may be
difficulty understanding speech and hearing fatigue etc.
Targeted people:
80 percent of adults in youngest age group
reported using headphones or ear-buds connected to
audio devices. And a study by centers for disease control
and prevention indicated that nearly 1 in 5 teenagers in
US exhibits some degree of hearing loss because of use
of headphones or ear-buds connected to audio devices.
Socioacusis may effects all of the age groups but people
with young age are at higher risk as there most of the
time is spent on using headphones.
Although the young population is the
cream of the nation but the abusive use of headphones
and other such gadgets are not only taking away the
creativity from them which means making them deaf socially and progressively but also taking away their
precious sense of hearing.
Prevention:
The best way to get rid of socioacusis is
prevention. Few ways are;
.By using the headphones when necessary with the
breaks after every 60 minutes. This break helps a lot by
giving time to ear structures to get rest and time to
restore normal functioning.
.By not using headphones as a symbol of being modern
and fashionable. Take them only a device.
.Make yourself busy in other activities so that the
stimulus of using headphones without any need reduces.
By making timetable and dividing time for different
activities or fixing a time for the use of headphones.
.Regular checkup also helps in prevention of socioacusis
as physician warns about the worsening condition thus
the reversal is easy and effective.
.Check and balance of volume of sound is also very
important as high volume destroys the hair cells. Trying
to keep volume to 50-60 while using headphones.
Conclusion:
Socioacusis shows the unexpected downsides of
modernistic advancements. Although headphones are
evolutionary products in modern era but weather they
give us benefits or not depends upon there usage. By
balancing the use of headphones we can mitigate the
bitter fruits of modernity’s approach towards the usage
of headphones. To achieve it we have to educate the
people by running the advertisements , awareness ads
and newspaper publications. he have to encourage the
safe listening activities to protect over hearing
capabilities and ensure the sound track of our lives
remains vibrant for coming years.
