Effects of headphones on hearing acuity of students of Ahmadu Bello university, Zaria, Nigeria

Hearing is one of the five senses; it is a complex process of picking up sound and attaching meaning to it. Exposure to loud noise can lead to hearing impairment. Personal audio electronics such as MP3 players, iPods and other music devices today can produce sounds up to 120 decibels, equivalent to a sound level at a rock concert. This study was designed to investigate the effects of headphones on the hearing acuity of students of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. To achieve this aim, male and female students of the university within the ages of 19-31 were used. A total of 96 students both male and female were divided into two groups, A and B, each group comprising of 48 subjects. Group A (study group), comprised of students who are users of headphones, while group B (control group) comprised of students who are non-users of headphones. Questionnaires were administered to check indices such as their age, sex, history of hearing impairment, frequency and duration of usage of head phones and so on. The results obtained from this study showed that there was a significant increase (p<0.05) in the hearing threshold in the left ear of 18.75 ± 5.58 when compared to control group (8.19 ± 3.19). There was also a significant increase (p<0.05) in the hearing threshold in the right ear of 20.26 ± 5.47 in the study group when compared to control group (8.45 ± 3.33). It can be concluded that there was a decrease in the hearing acuity of users of headphones. It is therefore advisable to avoid or minimize the duration of exposure to direct noise source which may to lead to early onset of hearing impairment

کلیدواژه ها:

Headphones ، Hearing acuity ، Audiometric test ، Hearing impairment ، Noise ،