Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 11, 2026
Neuro-rehabilitation Approach for Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Published on: January 25, 2016
Postdeployment hearing loss in U.S. Army soldiers seen at audiology clinics from April 1, 2003, through March 31,
Thomas M Helfer1, Nikki N Jordan, Robyn B Lee
1U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, Edgewood, MD, USA. thomas.helfer@us.army.mil
Purpose:
U.S. Army soldiers face unique noise exposures in the current deployed setting. The effects of these deployment-related exposures have not previously been documented.
Method:
In an attempt to initiate this process, medical evaluations performed at military audiology clinics from April 2003 through March 2004 were reviewed to compare noise-induced hearing loss injury (NIHLI) outcomes among soldiers whose diagnoses were classified as postdeployment-related versus non-postdeployment-related. Sentinel NIHLI outcomes of interest included acoustic trauma, permanent threshold shift, eardrum perforation, tinnitus, and military-specific H-3 and H-4 hearing loss profiles.
Results:
Significantly higher rates of NIHLI and associated outcomes were observed among soldiers whose diagnoses were postdeployment-related.
Conclusions:
Based on the findings from this evaluation, recommendations are provided for enhancing the force health protection posture for prevention of hearing loss in future deployments.