Headphones may cause injuries to the ears

Doctor warns people to pay attention when they use headphones because they cause damage to their health.-By Yves Didier Irakoze

Dr Léonard Bivahagumye: “… they must use them not abusively or like people who are addicted.” ©Iwacu

According to Dr Léonard Bivahagumye, an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, the consequences that occur when someone uses head phones for a long time orabusively depends on the fragility of the ear, the level of sound intensity and the duration in which the ears are exposed to sound. “I always put my headphones when I listen to the music or information through the radio. I do it many times a day”, Nadina Irangabiye says.

Jean Régis Tuyisenge points out that he feels happy when he puts his headsets on high volume in order to enjoy his music. He also mentions that when he is doing his jogging, he puts his headset on to keep moving. “I find it pleasurable to use my headsets rather than to listen something openly. And I do it also in order to remain discrete and not to disturb people around me”, Yvan Irakiza points out.
Dr Bivahagumye mentions that there are two types of consequences. The first one is due to the size of the small earphone nozzles that people put in their ear to listen to music or information. This can cause otitis externa or swimmers ear, an ear infection, which -untreated- might damageto the eardrum. The second consequence may occur in the internal ear due to traumacaused by the strong sound intensity. He adds that there are also other related consequences, because people listening to music, with headphones are often distracted and pay less attention in traffic, which might lead to road accidents.

Dr Bivahagumye advices users of headsets to think about how theyuse them, to not put the sound too loud and continue to pay attention to your surroundings. He urges people to use the big headsets that cover your ears, rather than the small earphones that you put inside. Lastly, he mentions that people can also listen to the radio with a low volume, without using earphones and without disturbing others.