In this interview, Dr. Sreek Cherukuri, an ear, nose, and throat specialist, discusses the dangers of loud noises at concerts, particularly those exceeding 112 decibels, which can cause permanent hearing loss in just one minute without protection.
He advises concertgoers to use earplugs to protect their hearing and emphasizes that children, with their smaller ear canals, should wear earmuffs or earplugs. Seniors, who may have accumulated noise exposure over their lives, should also take precautions.
Dr. Cherukuri outlines signs of hearing loss, such as muffled hearing or ringing after exposure to loud sounds, and the need for medical consultation if these symptoms persist.
He introduces a product called ClearCast, a wearable device that amplifies sound for better hearing, especially useful for those reluctant to use traditional hearing aids. The device is available over the counter and can be purchased online. The interview concludes with Dr. Cherukuri emphasizing the importance of treating hearing loss.
Transcript
Jake Pearson: Joining us now is Dr. Sreek Cherukuri an ear, nose, and throat specialist. Yeah, absolutely. So, first off, what are those typical noise levels for outdoor concerts?
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: That’s right. It does depend how close you are to the speakers, but I was recently at a concert at Wrigley Field. I had an app and it was 112 decibels loud. At that level, you’re, you’re safe for about a minute without ear protection. where you can have permanent noise in these hearing loss.
Jake Pearson: Wow, I can’t believe only a minute for something like that to act that quickly.
So, obviously, you know, people are going to want to be taking precautions for this. So, what precautions should concert goers, festival goers take in order to protect their hearing?
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: The easiest thing is earplugs. Just have them in case it gets really loud. You can buy these at any store and they will dampen the sound and keep it at a safe level and you’ll still be able to enjoy the music.
Jake Pearson: Yeah. And then do you maybe have any recommendations for kids as well? Or
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: yeah, kids are especially susceptible because of their smaller ear canals. If you take kids to a very loud concert, you’ve got to use earmuffs or again, earplugs for them.
Jake Pearson: Yeah. And then how about, you know, for grandparents or for seniors as well?
Should they maybe be, you know, a little bit more worried? Or they may be a little bit more vulnerable to those loud noises.
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: They have had a lifelong history of noise exposure, and it is cumulative. So, yes, same type of precautions.
Jake Pearson: Yeah, absolutely. So then, you know, what are maybe some signs of hearing loss, sort of, that you can notice in yourself or in your relatives?
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: So the main thing is if you feel muffled hearing or ringing more than a few hours or a day after a concert, you should get checked out with an ENT or an audiologist. Then signs of hearing loss are maybe what you’d expect, people asking you to repeat, people saying what or huh, or maybe answering the wrong question.
Very, very common in our elderly population.
Jake Pearson: Absolutely. So then what should you do if you do notice signs of hearing loss in yourself? Oh, I’m sorry. I think I actually said that same one twice, but I think you actually have a product maybe that could actually help out. Um, you know, in case you have experienced some of that hearing loss,
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: right?
Especially for our older population, everyone’s familiar with hearing aids, but only 25 percent of people use hearing aids, even if they have hearing loss. We’ve been recommending this new product that’s a wearable called ClearCast. It’s the conservation amplifying earphone and what it does is it’s very simple to use and you simply put it around your neck.
You can hear conversations on the television much clearer. You don’t have to use hearing aids. So this is a new option on the market. We’re recommending to patients that don’t want hearing aids or have tried hearing aids have trouble. But yeah, the recommendation is if you have hearing loss, an ENT doctor or an audiologist get checked out.
And it is very important that you treat hearing loss.
Jake Pearson: Yeah, and as well, doctor, uh, that it’s available over the counter if I’m not mistaken, correct?
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: That’s right. Yeah. You can buy it online. Clearcasthearing. com.
Jake Pearson: All right. Absolutely. Well, that is all the time that we have for our interview today. Dr. Cherukuri thank you so much again for coming on to the show.
Dr. Sreek Cherukuri: Thanks. Great to be here. Absolutely.