The Incidence of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss among Music Teachers

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the hearing acuity of three groups of music teachers: vocal, elementary instrumental, and high school instrumental. One hundred four music teachers were tested for evidence of hearing loss that could possibly be attributed to Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL). This type of hearing loss is a permanent loss of hearing acuity resulting from repeated exposure to intense sound levels. Results indicate that some risk of NIHL is involved in high school band directing but the degree of risk varies widely among individuals.