CA LEADING international audiologist has issued a warning to Worcestershire residents – protect your hearing or suffer irreparable damage.
Victoria Dixon, owner of Worcester Hearing Centre in The Cornmarket, is alarmed by the rise in cases of tinnitus, which is a ringing, buzzing or hissing noise in the ears that can be spasmodic or constant and distressing for the sufferer.

Ms Dixon, who has travelled throughout Europe and North America during a 20 year career as a hearing aid audiologist, said: “We live in a noisy and stressful world and more people are starting to suffer spasmodic, and aggressive, bouts of tinnitus. It’s becoming a modern phenomenon.

“There is no known cure and it only takes two hours’ exposure to 85 decibels to start to create cochlear hearing loss, which shows just how delicate our ears are.”

A member of the British Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists, Ms Dixon is particularly concerned about young people who use headsets to listen to music or play computer games.

“The major problem is that loud noise is now becoming the norm,” she said.
“We all need to minimise decibel levels and learn to manage noise as tinnitus can be distressing and tiring. It can also affect personal and working relationships.

“We work with people from a wide range of professions such as telecommunications and heavy and civil engineering to help them manage tinnitus sufferers. This includes counselling and advice on how to deal with the situation.”

Ms Dixon’s top tips for avoiding tinnitus are:

• Take time to relax in a quiet environment
• Minimise stress levels
• Avoid prolonged exposure to noise over 85 decibels
• Careful management of oxotoxic medicine, which can result in hearing loss or ringing in the ears

 

Launched in November 2011, Worcester Hearing Centre is run by three generations – Ms Dixon, her son Tom and mum Jean Eaves – and offers independent advice on all hearing aid styles and manufacturers.

The centre also supplies musicians’ hearing protection instruments, shooting enthusiasts’ ear defenders, custom fit sleep and swim plugs and personal in ear monitors for MP3 players.