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Noise induced hearing loss can be triggered at work by various causes. Employees who are continually subjected to high noise levels must be provided with adequate hearing protection and should be given regular hearing checks. Noise levels should be monitored according to HSE (Health and Safety Executive) guidelines. On occasion, acoustic trauma can be caused by an unexpected loud noise, such as collapsing scaffolding or an explosion. In such cases, if the employer has been negligent it may be possible to make a deafness compensation claim.
Deafness reversal study
Research by the University of California, and reported in the media in 2008, revealed that damaged inner ear hair cells, the cause of some hearing loss cases, may be able to be replaced by transplantation of certain brain cells.
The experimental study was funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, and the National Organization of Hearing Research in the US. The study was published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.
Usually, dead hair cells in the inner ear and the nerve cells that send sound signals to the brain (spiral ganglia neurons or SGNs) do not get replaced by the body. The researchers found that stem cells from a specific brain region, called the forebrain lateral ventricle (LV), were able to generate new nerve cells.
It was also found that a small group of cells within the LV region were similar to hair cells in the ear because of surface projections on the cells. These are called LV ependymal cells. Researchers wished to experiment further with LV stem cells as their ability to regenerate may provide a method for hearing recovery.
Much of the study was conducted with mouse cells and further extensive study would need to be carried out before the treatment could be applied to human hearing loss patients.
A spokesperson for the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), Dr Mark Downs told the BBC that nine million people in the UK were deaf or hard of hearing, but that much work was underway in developing restorative treatments.
He said: "There is a long way to go. This research is still at a very early stage, but the future looks increasingly brighter for people with hearing loss."
Deafness compensation claims and the industrial injury experts
If you feel your hearing loss has been caused by your working conditions or an accident at work you may be able to make a deafness compensation claim with YouClaim.
We have many years of experience in dealing with workers' compensation claims for personal and work related injury, and our personal injury solicitors pride themselves on their high success rate.
All our solicitors work on a no win no fee basis, ensuring that you will never be charged a penny for their services, whether your claim is successful or not, and we guarantee that you will receive 100 per cent of any compensation award.
If you feel your hearing has been damaged at work please call our free UK helpline on 0800 10 757 95 or we can call you back at a time to suit you. Alternatively, fill in our online claim form and we will call you to discuss the details of your deafness compensation claim.
