Nurse's Bulletin: Hearing health advice for your virtual learner

9/29/2020

From Nurse Christie Morrison, RN

Families have been asking about hearing loss/damage from constant headphone use during our remote learning environment. These excellent questions went straight to the TOPS K-8 Audiologist Molly Bergan and the District Audiologists for their response. The District Audiologists provided the following important message back to the School Nursing Department.

The good news is that the likelihood of hearing loss from school headphone use is low. We start to worry about hearing loss when a person is exposed to 80 dB of sound for a period of 8 hours or longer. For comparison, that’s about the level of a garbage disposal. Loud conversation (such as in a restaurant) is about 70 dB. So, while it is important to think about and monitor headphone volume, the risk is fairly low. Another consideration is listening fatigue. Some kids might become mentally exhausted from listening all day and need a break. Click "Read More" for some headphone tips.

Here are some tips for listening with headphones safely:

While your child is using headphones, keep the surrounding environment as quiet as possible.
Take a few minutes to set the volume with your child. You can use a video online. In a quiet area, set the volume for the video so that it is comfortable to listen to, but not too loud. Use the same pair of headphones and agree on an ideal volume. Then, make a note of the numerical indicator of the volume or the position of the volume bar. Ask the child to make that level the maximum volume. Another rule of thumb is the 80/90 rule. If the volume is 80% or higher, it is only safe to listen at that volume for 90 minutes or less.
You should not be able to hear words when you are near a child with headphones on—that means the volume is too loud. Your child should also be able to hear you talking to them when you are an arms-length away or closer.
If your child complains of muffled hearing or ringing in their ears, check in with their healthcare provider. Those symptoms can be an indication of noise damage or can be a sign of other conditions such as an ear infection.
No one type of headphone is considered safer—the most important factor is the volume level. Try your child’s headphones yourself to get an idea of how loud they are.
Take listening breaks as often as possible. Listening can be mentally exhausting too!

Due to COVID and our social distancing requirements, currently the school is unable to do hearing exams. If you have any concerns, please reach out to Eckstein’s School Nurse Christie Morrison. She can help provide a referral or walk you through next steps.

Christie Morrison, RN: cmmorrison@seattleschools.org (206) 252-5017