High levels of environmental noise may lead to psychological symptoms. The present study has hypothesized that personal listening device (PLD) use and a negative attitude to noise are significantly related to anxiety and/or depression. This is a cross-sectional study conducted on 431 six-grade students (35% male) at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade. All students completed the questionnaires related to socio-demographic data, noise/music exposure habits, behaviors related to PLD use, tinnitus, headaches, consumption of alcohol, coffee, energy drinks and cigarettes, YANS (Youth Attitude to Noise Scale), CES-D (The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression), and GAD-7 (Generalised Anxiety Disorder Assessment - 7 item scale) questionnaires. There were 396 (91.9%) of investigated students who used PLD, with more frequent use among girls compared to boys (95.0% and 86.8%, respectively; p = 0.002). We found no significant relationship between the frequency of PLD use and depression and anxiety. However, continuous daily PLD use longer than 1 hour was significantly and positively related to depression (p = 0.006). Students with depression had a lower total YANS score compared to those without depression, indicating a more negative attitude toward noise (p = 0.042). Students with no difficulties to concentrate in noise and with a positive attitude to daily noises had about 37% lower chance to suffer from depression and anxiety, respectively. PLD use is common among medical students and may be associated with their mental health. Longer than 1 hour of continuous daily use of PLD may be positively related to depression. We also found a significant relationship between difficulties concentrating in noisy environments and depression, and between negative attitudes to daily noises and anxiety.

The use of personal listening devices (PLDs) is becoming increasingly popular, particularly among young people. Numerous studies have demonstrated that being exposed to PLDs can have adverse effects on the auditory system. Owing to the similarities between the auditory and vestibular systems, it is possible that the negative effects of PLD use may extend to the vestibular system, an area that has not been extensively studied. The study aimed to investigate the impact of exposure to PLDs on the vestibular system, specifically the sacculo-collic reflex assessed by the cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potential. The current study used a cross-sectional study design. A total of 80 participants were divided into four groups based on the history of PLD exposure. Each group consisted of 20 participants who underwent cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP) testing using alternating polarity 500 Hz tone bursts. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Bonferroni post hoc test were used to obtain the statistically significant difference among the group. The results showed that the amplitude of p1-n1 of cVEMP was significantly reduced in individuals with longer PLD exposure duration. The study suggests that listening to music through a PLD at high levels of volume controls could be deleterious to the vestibular well-being of an individual. The study highlights the importance of being aware of the adverse effects of using PLDs to prevent potential damage to the vestibular systems.

Transportation noise seems to impair self-reported health status (SRHS). However, only a few studies have considered the role of noise annoyance and noise sensitivity in this deleterious effect. This study aims investigating mediator and moderator roles of noise annoyance and noise sensitivity. In 2013, the DEBATS longitudinal study included 1244 participants aged over 18 years and living around three French airports. These participants were followed up in 2015 and 2017. They self-reported their perceived health status, aircraft noise annoyance, and their noise sensitivity via a questionnaire during the three visits. Noise maps were used to estimate aircraft noise levels at the facade of participants' residence. Generalized linear mixed models with a random intercept at the participant level were used. Aircraft noise levels were associated with severe annoyance. Severe annoyance tent to be associated with impaired SRHS. Aircraft noise levels were associated with impaired SRHS only in men (odds ratio [OR] = 1.47, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.02, 2.11], for a 10-dBA Lden increase in aircraft noise levels) with a weaker association adjusted for annoyance (OR = 1.36, 95% CI = [0.94, 1.98]). The association was stronger in men who reported high noise sensitivity (OR = 1.84, 95% CI = [0.92, 3.70], versus OR = 1.39, 95% CI = [0.90, 2.14], for men who were not highly sensitive to noise). From our results, the deleterious effect of aircraft noise on SRHS could be mediated by noise annoyance and moderated by noise sensitivity. Further studies using causal inference methods are needed for identifying causal effect of exposure, mediator, and moderator.

Context:Hyperinsulinemia is the most common metabolic change associated with cochleovestibular diseases.Aim:We aimed to investigate the auditory functions in hyperinsulinemic individuals.Settings and Design:A total of 164 patients were included in this case-control study. While 76 patients with insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance [HOMA-IR] of ≥2.5) constituted the case group, 88 patients with HOMA-IR values of <2.5 constituted the control group of the study.Material and Methods:The 75 g oral glucose tolerance test, blood biochemistry tests, hormonal analysis, audiological assessment, electrocochleography (EcochG), and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) testing were performed.Statistical Analysis:One-way analysis of variance and Kruskal–Wallis analysis of variance were used for the comparison of the metabolic and ear parameters in the normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) groups. The chi-square test was used to compare nominal variables. Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients were used for the correlation analyses of continuous variables.Results:The pure tone audiometry at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz was better in the case group than in the control group. A positive correlation was found between HbA1c and right ear 0.5, 1, 4, and 8 kHz threshold values and left ear 2, 4, 6, and 8 kHz threshold values. A negative correlation was found between HbA1c and speech discrimination scores. The right ear 1.00 and 2.83 kHz TEOAE measurements in the individuals with NGT were found higher than those in patients with IGT, and the 1.42 kHz TEOAE measurements and reproducibility were found higher than those in patients with IFG. The left ear 1.00 and 1.42 kHz TEOAE measurements of the IGT patients were found lower than those of IFG and NGT patients.Conclusion:We showed that hearing was worsening in hyperinsulinemic patients and prediabetic conditions were related to hearing function impairment.

Introduction:Noise is one of the main sources of discomfort in modern societies. It affects physiology, behavior, and cognition of exposed subjects. Although the effects of noise on cognition are well known, gender role in noise-cognition relationship remains controversial.Aim:We analyzed the effects of noise on the ability of male and female rats to execute the Radial Arm Water Maze (RAWM) paradigm.Materials and Methods:Male and female Wistar rats were exposed to noise for 3 weeks, and the cognitive effects were assessed at the end of the exposure. RAWM execution included a three-day training phase and a reversal-learning phase conducted on the fourth day. Escape latency, reference memory errors, and working memory errors were quantified and compared between exposed and non-exposed subjects.Results:We found that male rats were in general more affected by noise. Execution during the three-day learning phase evidenced that male exposed rats employed significantly more time to acquire the task than the non-exposed. On the other hand, the exposed females solved the paradigm in latencies similar to control rats. Both, males and females diminished their capacity to execute on the fourth day when re-learning abilities were tested.Conclusion:We conclude that male rats might be less tolerable to noise compared to female ones and that spatial learning may be a cognitive function comparably more vulnerable to noise.

Introduction:The aim of this study was to investigate self-reported hearing and portable music listening habits, measured hearing function and music exposure levels in Swedish adolescents. The study was divided into two parts.Materials and Methods:The first part included 280 adolescents, who were 17 years of age and focused on self-reported data on subjective hearing problems and listening habits regarding portable music players. From this group, 50 adolescents volunteered to participate in Part II of the study, which focused on audiological measurements and measured listening volume.Results:The results indicated that longer lifetime exposure in years and increased listening frequency were associated with poorer hearing thresholds and more self-reported hearing problems. A tendency was found for listening to louder volumes and poorer hearing thresholds. Women reported more subjective hearing problems compared with men but exhibited better hearing thresholds. In contrast, men reported more use of personal music devices, and they listen at higher volumes.Discussion:Additionally, the study shows that adolescents listening for ≥3 h at every occasion more likely had tinnitus. Those listening at ≥85 dB LAeq, FF and listening every day exhibited poorer mean hearing thresholds, reported more subjective hearing problems and listened more frequently in school and while sleeping.Conclusion:Although the vast majority listened at moderate sound levels and for shorter periods of time, the study also indicates that there is a subgroup (10%) that listens between 90 and 100 dB for longer periods of time, even during sleep. This group might be at risk for developing future noise-induced hearing impairments.

There is a need for better understanding of various characteristics in hyperacusis in the general population. The objectives of the present study were to investigate individuals in the general population with hyperacusis regarding demographics, lifestyle, perceived general health and hearing ability, hyperacusis-specific characteristics and behavior, and comorbidity. Using data from a large-scale population-based questionnaire study, we investigated individuals with physician-diagnosed (n=66) and self-reported (n=313) hyperacusis in comparison to individuals without hyperacusis (n=2995). High age, female sex, and high education were associated with hyperacusis, and that trying to avoid sound sources, being able to affect the sound environment, and having sough medical attention were common reactions and behaviors. Posttraumatic stress disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, generalized anxiety disorder, depression, exhaustion, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, migraine, hearing impairment, tinnitus, and back/joint/muscle disorders were comorbid with hyperacusis. The results provide ground for future study of these characteristic features being risk factors for development of hyperacusis and/or consequences of hyperacusis.

Research has reported on the use of soundfield amplification devices in the classroom. However, no study has used standardized tests to determine the potential advantages of the dynamic soundfield system for normally hearing students and for the teacher's voice. Our aim was to evaluate the impact of using dynamic soundfield system on the noise of the classroom, teacher's voice and students’ academic performance. This was a prospective cohort study in which 20 student participants enrolled in the third year of basic education were divided into two groups (i.e., control and experimental); their teacher participated. The experimental group was exposed to the dynamic soundfield system for 3 consecutive months. The groups were assessed using standardized tests to evaluate their academic performance. Further, questionnaires and statements were collected on the participants’ experience of using the soundfield system. We statistically analyzed the results to compare the academic performance of the control group with that of the experimental group. In all cases, a significance level of P < .05 was adopted. Use of the dynamic soundfield system was effective for improving the students’ academic performance on standardized tests for reading, improving the teacher's speech intelligibility, and reducing the teacher's vocal strain. The dynamic soundfield system minimizes the impact of noise in the classroom as demonstrated by the mensuration of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and pupil performance on standardized tests for reading and student and teacher ratings of amplification system effectiveness.

This study was conducted to compare the pattern of age-related hearing decline in individuals with and without self-reported previous occupational noise exposure. This was a prospective, population-based, longitudinal study of individuals aged 70-75 years, from an epidemiological investigation, comprising three age cohorts. In total there were 1013 subjects (432 men and 581 women). Participants were tested with pure tone audiometry, and they answered a questionnaire to provide information regarding number of years of occupational noise exposure. There were no significant differences in hearing decline, at any frequency, for those aged 70-75 years between the noise-exposed (N= 62 men, 22 women) and the nonexposed groups (N = 96 men, 158 women). This study supports the additive model of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) and age-related hearing loss (ARHL). The concept of different patterns of hearing decline between persons exposed and not exposed to noise could not be verified.

Tinnitus is a symptom usually related to cochlear change that may arise from noise exposure and induces expression of proinflammatory cytokines including interleukin-6 (IL6). This study aimed to evaluate the association between the polymorphism of the IL6 gene in the region 174G/C and tinnitus in elderly with history of occupational noise exposure. Settings and Design: This was a cross-sectional study with a sample of 179 independent elderly individuals aged >60 years. Information on exposure to occupational noise was obtained by interviews. Audiological evaluation was performed using pure tone audiometry and genotyped through polymerase chain reaction by restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Data were analyzed using the chi-square test and the odds ratio (OR), with the significance level set at 5%. Among the study subjects, 24.6% were homozygous for the G allele, 39.7% were homozygous for the C allele, and 35.8% were heterozygous for IL6 (P > 0.05). Of these, 33.5% reported noise exposure history, with 42.5% having tinnitus. We found significant association between the genotype and allele frequencies of the IL6 −174 gene (rs1800795) and tinnitus among the elderly with history of exposure to occupational noise (P = 0.03). The elderly with the C allele were less likely to have tinnitus associated with history of exposure to occupational noise [OR = 0.167, confidence interval (CI) 95% 0.167-0.749; P = 0.004] when compared to those carrying the G allele. This study suggests that there is an association between polymorphisms in the IL6 gene at region – 174G/C and susceptibility to tinnitus.