MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Wenqi Gan, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health
University of Kentucky College of Public Health
Lexington, KY 40536
Medical Research: What is the background for this study?
Dr. Wenqi Gan: In epidemiologic studies on health effects of noise exposure, community noise is typically assessed using noise prediction models, occupational noise is assessed using self-reports or historical records. These methods are able to estimate community noise exposure in residential areas and occupational noise exposure in the workplace; however, these methods are not able to accurately reflect actual personal noise exposure in the home and workplace. The lack of personal noise exposure information is a major limitation of previous studies, which could cause underestimations of the true health effects of noise exposure. Bilateral high-frequency hearing loss, an objective indicator for long-term exposure to loud noise, may be used to investigate health effects of noise exposure.
Medical Research: What are the main findings?
Dr. Wenqi Gan: This study includes 5223 people aged 20-69 years who participated in the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2004. Compared with people with normal high-frequency hearing, people with bilateral high-frequency hearing loss were approximately two times more likely to have coronary heart disease. This association was particularly striking for people who were chronically exposed to loud noise in the workplace or leisure time. For example, for currently employed workers with occupational noise exposure history, the possibility of having coronary heart disease increased more than four times. This study confirms that chronic exposure to loud noise is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease.
Dr. Harrison LIn[/caption]
Harrison W. Lin, M.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
UC Irvine Medical Center
Orange, CA 92868
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: We reviewed the data from the Integrated Health Interview Series, which is a project funded by the National Institutes of Health to supplement the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a household-based, personal interview survey administered by the US Census Bureau and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention since 1957. The NHIS serves as the largest source of health information in the civilian population of the United States.
Analyzing the available data on tinnitus symptoms from this survey, we found that approximately 1 in 10 Americans have chronic tinnitus. Moreover, durations of occupational and leisure time noise exposures correlated with rates of tinnitus – people who reported higher rates of loud noise exposures at work and recreationally more frequently reported chronic tinnitus.
Finally, health care providers provided advice and treatment plans to patients with chronic tinnitus that were infrequently in line with the clinical practice guidelines published by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery Foundation.
Dr-Álex-García-Faura[/caption]
Dr. Álex García-Faura
Scientific Director of the Institut Marquès
Spain
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Our clinical research during the last three years has been focused on the effects of music during the early stages of life; in our preliminary studies, applying music to pregnant patients using abdominal speakers, we discovered that there was no fetal reaction to music and that the fetus would only be able to hear it as a distorted whisper because of the effects of the abdominal wall. We thought that it would be necessary to get the music closer to the fetus, and we decided to try to apply the music vaginally. It was a great decision.
Dr. Emamifar[/caption]
Dr. Amir Emamifar, MD
Department of Rheumatology
Odense university Hospital
Svendborg Hospital, Denmark
[caption id="attachment_23869" align="alignleft" width="139"]
Dr. Hansen[/caption]
Associate Professor
Dr. Inger Marie Jensen Hansen, PhD, DMsci
Department of Rheumatology
Odense university Hospital
Svendborg Hospital
University of Southern Denmark
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic, inflammatory disease that affects 1% of the general population. Apart from main articular manifestations, rheumatoid arthritis may involve other organs including heart, lung, skin, and eye. The auditory system can be affected during the course of the disease as well; however the association between rheumatoid arthritis and hearing impairment has not been clearly defined. It seems that hearing impairment in rheumatoid arthritis is a multifactorial disease affecting by environmental factors and disease and patient characteristics. We did a comprehensive review of all published data to reveal the potential link between rheumatoid arthritis and hearing impairment.
