Tinnitus
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Still looking more experience about the subject.
How are professional pilots coping with Tinnitus?
Has your Tinnitus got worse after flying even protecting your ears from noise?
Any bad experience about ANC headphones? Can they actually increase Tinnitus?
Any experience that pressure changes could make tinnitus worse?
I'm looking information for these questions as I feel that my work in regional turboprop is slowly making my tinntus louder even I protect my ears with plugs and anc headphones.
Appreciate your replies!
How are professional pilots coping with Tinnitus?
Has your Tinnitus got worse after flying even protecting your ears from noise?
Any bad experience about ANC headphones? Can they actually increase Tinnitus?
Any experience that pressure changes could make tinnitus worse?
I'm looking information for these questions as I feel that my work in regional turboprop is slowly making my tinntus louder even I protect my ears with plugs and anc headphones.
Appreciate your replies!
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Hi, have you noticed any increase in volume due flying? I got this 10 months ago and it was stable the whole summer until I started flying again 5+ months ago.. now it seems its slowly getting louder. Dont know if its due flying but I have protected my hearing with earplugs under headset and cockpit is about 70db during cruise.
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Had it for over 2 years now, sometimes ill wear ear plugs or filters on the flight deck. looking at maybe getting Bose QC30 noise cancelling headphones just to wear in the cockpit. With the cockpit speaker on I have heard that there is no problem in hearing ATC etc. Flying the airbus and overall I think it is a quiet cockpit compared to other aircraft so Im lucky in that regard. Know a few other people at my company who have it and they seem to manage. over the time I have had it it ha progressed from my right ear to now both ears however I haven't noticed any increase in sound. it doesn't really bother me anymore and I sleep fine at night. Things do really get better, just be safe
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Hi, thanks for the reply, how did you get your tinnitus? And is it loud or just mild so you only hear it in silence? Mine is now getting louder and I cant figure why. I protect my hearing in cockpit and outside so only thing I can imagine is pressure change but how that could be the reason? Just had audiogram and my hearing is perfect, apparently better than should be normally, anyway they only test the normal range and not the high range where my T sound is.
Hi P.H. I got my tinnitus doing walk rounds with other aircraft running just next to me - ear defenders were not around at the time. Also the cockpit environment of the aircraft that I was flying was very noisy. I can hear it all the time, but sometimes forget about it. It doesn't seem to be getting much worse - I use a noise cancelling headset now.
I have had a high pitched scream over both ears for many years. GA through Turbo props to many years of flying jets with one ear uncovered for conversation across the flight deck.
My audigram shows no significant loss for my age (64) and I never subscribed to the Bose/ear plug route as frankly I like to hear things drop off my aircraft rather than read about them on EICAS.
My wife is suffering badly but having had scans and tests there is nothing obviously wrong. She started hers after a particularly bad sinus infection. These have been common through hay fever every year but this one's left permanent damage.
If your audiogram is OK then your career shouldn't be affected. Good Luck.
My audigram shows no significant loss for my age (64) and I never subscribed to the Bose/ear plug route as frankly I like to hear things drop off my aircraft rather than read about them on EICAS.
My wife is suffering badly but having had scans and tests there is nothing obviously wrong. She started hers after a particularly bad sinus infection. These have been common through hay fever every year but this one's left permanent damage.
If your audiogram is OK then your career shouldn't be affected. Good Luck.
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I have had a high pitched scream over both ears for many years. GA through Turbo props to many years of flying jets with one ear uncovered for conversation across the flight deck.
My audigram shows no significant loss for my age (64) and I never subscribed to the Bose/ear plug route as frankly I like to hear things drop off my aircraft rather than read about them on EICAS.
My wife is suffering badly but having had scans and tests there is nothing obviously wrong. She started hers after a particularly bad sinus infection. These have been common through hay fever every year but this one's left permanent damage.
If your audiogram is OK then your career shouldn't be affected. Good Luck.
My audigram shows no significant loss for my age (64) and I never subscribed to the Bose/ear plug route as frankly I like to hear things drop off my aircraft rather than read about them on EICAS.
My wife is suffering badly but having had scans and tests there is nothing obviously wrong. She started hers after a particularly bad sinus infection. These have been common through hay fever every year but this one's left permanent damage.
If your audiogram is OK then your career shouldn't be affected. Good Luck.
Thanks for your reply, aviation industry is a noisy environment and it seems that quite a few of us suffer from tinnitus :/ I currently fly turboprop also and try to protect my ears as much as I can. Still I keep wondering is it the flying that still keeps making it worse or is it just slowly progressing like that no matter if I fly or not. Didnt have any issues with my ears before and flying didnt cause any issues even when I had flu, so I have difficulties to find cause for whats making it worse. My audiogram was very good and I have had four of those during the past 11 month that I have had this so I guess my hearing is not worsening which is good.
Has tinnitus affected your life or flying in any way or have you just got used to it so it doesnt bother you anymore at all? is your tinnitus very loud or just mild?
regards
PH
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PH,
My ENT specialist told me that T does not compromise a pilots' career as long as your hearing is within the predefined limits and you can cope T.
He recommends an ANC headset like Bose.
About your concerns of noise across the flight deck. Generally, the human ear can withstand 80db for 8 hours.
Db has a logarithmic scale: 80db for 8 hours, 83db for 4 hours, 86 for 2 hours; 89 for 1 hour, etc
So the louder it gets, the more important you protect your ears with earplugs or ANC headset.
If the average cockpit noise is around 70db cruise level, you should be fine.
Keep in mind that you don't 'over protect' your ears. By over protecting, the ears might become more sensitive to noise.
You need to find a good balance.
Also try to not focus too much on it (I know, not easy...)
I hope your T is not getting worse!
If you have more questions, just let me know!
My ENT specialist told me that T does not compromise a pilots' career as long as your hearing is within the predefined limits and you can cope T.
He recommends an ANC headset like Bose.
About your concerns of noise across the flight deck. Generally, the human ear can withstand 80db for 8 hours.
Db has a logarithmic scale: 80db for 8 hours, 83db for 4 hours, 86 for 2 hours; 89 for 1 hour, etc
So the louder it gets, the more important you protect your ears with earplugs or ANC headset.
If the average cockpit noise is around 70db cruise level, you should be fine.
Keep in mind that you don't 'over protect' your ears. By over protecting, the ears might become more sensitive to noise.
You need to find a good balance.
Also try to not focus too much on it (I know, not easy...)
I hope your T is not getting worse!
If you have more questions, just let me know!
Last edited by Dreamflight80; 18th Apr 2018 at 06:53.
About your concerns of noise across the flight deck. Generally, the human ear can withstand 80db for 8 hours.
Db has a logarithmic scale: 80db for 8 hours, 83db for 4 hours, 86 for 2 hours; 89 for 1 hour, etc
Db has a logarithmic scale: 80db for 8 hours, 83db for 4 hours, 86 for 2 hours; 89 for 1 hour, etc
Hi, have you noticed any increase in volume due flying? I got this 10 months ago and it was stable the whole summer until I started flying again 5+ months ago.. now it seems its slowly getting louder. Dont know if its due flying but I have protected my hearing with earplugs under headset and cockpit is about 70db during cruise.
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Interesting. My T started after I stopped flying at 65 - as did my hypertension.
I wonder if ( 5 years on) it is the drugs (amlodipine and candesartan) that could be causing it. The trouble is that you scare yourself rigid if you read about the possible side effects of these drugs. Importantly though, they do the job re BP!
Cheers all,
mcdhu
I wonder if ( 5 years on) it is the drugs (amlodipine and candesartan) that could be causing it. The trouble is that you scare yourself rigid if you read about the possible side effects of these drugs. Importantly though, they do the job re BP!
Cheers all,
mcdhu
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BB I'm thinking of running a trial by giving up each drug in turn for a fortnight (while monitoring my BP daily) to see if there is any improvement in the T.
I would run it past my GP, but it's almost too difficult to get an appointment if there is nothing acute wrong - and trying to see a cardiologist without paying is out of the question - especially if you can't get to see the GP.
Cheers
mcdhu
I would run it past my GP, but it's almost too difficult to get an appointment if there is nothing acute wrong - and trying to see a cardiologist without paying is out of the question - especially if you can't get to see the GP.
Cheers
mcdhu
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Do airline companies have a policy concerning allowed types of headsets or is any pilot allowed to use the headset he/she prefers?
I'm asking this because a pilot with T will likely prefer an ANR headset instead of a default one that is provided by the airline company.
I'm asking this because a pilot with T will likely prefer an ANR headset instead of a default one that is provided by the airline company.
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I'm new to this forum, and I saw this thread so I thought I would throw in my 2 cents worth.
I developed pretty loud tinnitus about 3 months ago.. Really had me freaked-out. Went to see my aviation doc, and was told to get a good headset.
So, I shopped around and figured I'd splurge and got the best the market could offer. The Bose A20...
Since I purchased it, I have done two short single day trips, and I have noticed my tinnitus was worse at the end of my duty period. Felt like I had been to a rock concert. I am convinced that the active noise cancelling is the issue.
I think the Bose A20 is a Pandora's Box for our hearing and hearing health. They market it as a safe and secure way to protect your hearing because it blocks out unwanted noise, thus allowing you to lower the volume of the radio. I still need to research this, but I think the ANR technology is simply bombarding our ears with a 2nd inverted-phase wave. We don't hear any sound because of the inverted-phase wave, but our ears are now exposed to twice the amount of pressure energy.
Sat on the jumpseat a few times, wore earplugs with a regular headset and didn't notice any issues after those flights.
I'm selling my Bose A20, avoiding any sort of ANR technology and gonna go get a good 'ol pair of Passive Noise Reduction David-Clarks!
I developed pretty loud tinnitus about 3 months ago.. Really had me freaked-out. Went to see my aviation doc, and was told to get a good headset.
So, I shopped around and figured I'd splurge and got the best the market could offer. The Bose A20...
Since I purchased it, I have done two short single day trips, and I have noticed my tinnitus was worse at the end of my duty period. Felt like I had been to a rock concert. I am convinced that the active noise cancelling is the issue.
I think the Bose A20 is a Pandora's Box for our hearing and hearing health. They market it as a safe and secure way to protect your hearing because it blocks out unwanted noise, thus allowing you to lower the volume of the radio. I still need to research this, but I think the ANR technology is simply bombarding our ears with a 2nd inverted-phase wave. We don't hear any sound because of the inverted-phase wave, but our ears are now exposed to twice the amount of pressure energy.
Sat on the jumpseat a few times, wore earplugs with a regular headset and didn't notice any issues after those flights.
I'm selling my Bose A20, avoiding any sort of ANR technology and gonna go get a good 'ol pair of Passive Noise Reduction David-Clarks!
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Tonight, the headline story on CBS' "60 Minutes" (7:00 pm USA Eastern Daylight Savings Time, often delayed by golf, etc.) is the potential injury of US Embassy personnel by yet unexplained means, where China is mentioned in story announcement. It will be interesting to see the degree to which Tinnitus appears as an ascribed symptom.
