2022 NHCA Annual Virtual Conference

There is renewed interest the US with preventative healthcare and wellness, focused on education, healthy lifestyles, and protective measures against injury and disease. Unfortunately, Audiology may be behind the curve when addressing the needs of people exposed to music. Noise-induced hearing loss is completely preventable; therefore, audiology best practice should execute preventative strategies like screening, monitoring, and education. Our analysis indicates that extended high frequency (EHF) thresholds, from 9-18 kHz reveal noise-induced injury to the auditory system before a noticeable threshold change in the conventionally-tested frequencies (.025-8 kHz). Similar research has been conducted with industrial workers, while this data set focuses on those in the music industry, both amateur and professional. Patient data from Sensaphonics Hearing Wellness was retrospectively analyzed using weighted linear regression, comparing those with bilateral notches (all other thresholds WNL) in the conventional frequencies to those with bilateral normal hearing, grouped by age decade. The data demonstrated that EHF thresholds are a significant predictor of notches with those under age 40. After 40, the notch and normal groups begin to overlap in EHFs, likely due to other age-related factors like cardiovascular health. EHF audiometry should be implemented with patient education as a wellness strategy for hearing healthcare.