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Hearing development in classical orchestral musicians. A follow-up study.
K R Kähäri1, A Axelsson, P A Hellström
1National Institute of Working Life, Göteborg, Sweden. kim.kahari@niwl.se
Scandinavian Audiology
|October 31, 2001
Summary
This study tracked hearing in classical musicians for 16 years. Despite prolonged exposure to orchestral noise, their hearing showed no significant progressive decline, indicating resilience to occupational noise exposure.
Area of Science:
- Occupational health
- Audiology
- Music acoustics
Background:
- Musicians face prolonged exposure to high-intensity noise.
- Understanding the long-term effects of orchestral noise on hearing is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess hearing development in classical musicians over 16 years.
- To evaluate the risk of progressive hearing loss in orchestral musicians.
- To investigate gender-based hearing differences and compare results with normal hearing populations.
Main Methods:
- Pure tone audiometry was used for hearing reassessment in 56 musicians.
- Data from 1979 and 1995 were compared to track hearing changes.
- High frequency pure-tone average (HFPTA) values were compared against ISO 7029 and a normal population (Davis).
Main Results:
- No significant progressive hearing loss was observed over the 16-year follow-up.
- Males showed a trend towards greater high-frequency hearing reduction than females, particularly in the left ear.
- Female audiograms displayed a 6 kHz notch, while males exhibited a high-tone sloping configuration.
Conclusions:
- Classical musicians demonstrated stable hearing thresholds despite extended occupational noise exposure.
- Gender differences in hearing configuration were noted, but overall hearing remained resilient.
- The study suggests that classical orchestral work may not lead to significant progressive hearing loss.