Anatomical effects of impact noise

Four groups of binaural chinchillas were exposed to impact noise (B-duration = 200 ms) ranging from 119 dB to 137 dB peak equivalent SPL at repetition rates of 1/s or 4/s. The duration of exposure was adjusted so that each exposure consisted of equal acoustic energy. Animals were then sacrificed immediately, 24 h or 30 days after the exposure and their cochleas subjected to scanning electron microscopy. For exposures of 119 dB or greater, there appeared to be direct mechanical damage, including large clefts between the third row of outer hair cells and Deiters' cells and fracture of tight cell junctions at the reticular lamina. There was also a progressive increase in cochlear damage over the 30 days of recovery. The patterns of cochlear pathology are compared with hearing losses and cochleograms of chinchillas previously subjected to similar exposures and with results of studies using higher level impulse noise. The results are discussed in terms of 'critical level' for impact and impulse noise.