Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Hyperacusis, and Diplacusis in Professional Musicians: A Systematic Review

Arianna Di Stadio, Laura Dipietro, Giampietro Ricci, Antonio Della Volpe, Antonio Minni, Antonio Greco, Marco De Vincentiis and Massimo Ralli
Additional contact information
Arianna Di Stadio: Otolaryngology Department, University of Perugia, 06123 Perugia, Italy
Laura Dipietro: Highland Instruments, Cambridge, MA 02238, USA
Giampietro Ricci: Otolaryngology Department, University of Perugia, 06123 Perugia, Italy
Antonio Della Volpe: Santobono-Pousillipon Hospital, Cochlear Implant Center, 80129 Naples, Italy
Antonio Minni: Department of Sense Organs, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Antonio Greco: Department of Sense Organs, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Marco De Vincentiis: Department of Oral and Maxillo-Facial Science, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Massimo Ralli: Department of Oral and Maxillo-Facial Science, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 10, 1-14

Abstract: Professional musicians (PMs) are at high risk of developing hearing loss (HL) and other audiological symptoms such as tinnitus, hyperacusis, and diplacusis. The aim of this systematic review is to (A) assess the risk of developing HL and audiological symptoms in PMs and (B) evaluate if different music genres (Pop/Rock Music—PR; Classical Music—CL) expose PMs to different levels of risk of developing such conditions. Forty-one articles including 4618 PMs were included in the study. HL was found in 38.6% PMs; prevalence was significantly higher among PR (63.5%) than CL (32.8%) PMs; HL mainly affected the high frequencies in the 3000-6000 Hz range and was symmetric in 68% PR PMs and in 44.5% CL PMs. Tinnitus was the most common audiological symptom, followed by hyperacusis and diplacusis. Tinnitus was almost equally distributed between PR and CL PMs; diplacusis was more common in CL than in PR PMs, while prevalence of hyperacusis was higher among PR PMs. Our review showed that PR musicians have a higher risk of developing HL compared to CL PMs; exposure to sounds of high frequency and intensity and absence of ear protection may justify these results. Difference in HL symmetry could be explained by the type of instruments used and consequent single-sided exposure.

Keywords: hearing loss; noise induced hearing loss; musicians; pop-rock; classic; tinnitus; hyperacusis; diplacusis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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