The protective effect of hyperbaric oxygen on hearing during chronic noise exposure

A series of experiments were conducted on guinea pigs to study the protective effect of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) on hearing during chronic repeated noise exposure. A 1/3 octave band of noise centered at 1000 Hz was used (126 dB SPL, 1 h daily for 5 d; or 108 dB SPL, 1 h daily, 5 d/week for 4 weeks). Some groups of animals were treated with HBO (2-3 ATA, 1 h duration) before noise exposure. The results indicate that inhalation of HBO (every other day) can markedly reduce noise-induced threshold shift and relieve cochlear damage. The mechanism responsible for HBO protection against noise-induced hearing damage is discussed.