It is common knowledge that loud sounds can damage our hearing. Now, a new study by researchers from the University of Leicester in the UK sheds new light on how this happens, paving the way for new prevention and treatment strategies for hearing loss and tinnitus.

Share on Pinterest Approximately 26 million Americans have high-frequency hearing loss as a result of exposure to loud noises at work or during leisure activities, such as listening to loud music.

According to the Hearing Health Foundation, approximately 26 million Americans have high-frequency hearing loss as a result of exposure to loud noises at work or during leisure activities, such as listening to loud music.

The research team, including Dr. Martine Hamann, a lecturer in neurosciences at the University of Leicester, notes that many individuals listen to loud music without realizing it can affect their hearing later in life.

“People who suffer from hearing loss have difficulties in understanding speech, particularly when the environment is noisy and when other people are talking nearby,” says Dr. Hamann.

She notes that understanding speech is dependent on fast transmission of auditory signals through the auditory nerve – the nerve that transports sound waves from the cochlea of the inner ear to the brain.

But previous research has shown that after exposure to loud sounds, transmission of these auditory signals slows down, leading to hearing loss.

Dr. Hamann says it is important to determine the mechanisms behind this. “Understanding these underlying phenomena means that it could be possible to find medicines to improve auditory perception, specifically in noisy backgrounds,” she adds.