Noise Awareness Day | Free Hearing Screenings at AMC

We are inundated every day by noise ? iPods, lawn mowers, snowmobiles, grain dryers, etc. More than 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, and by the year 2030, that number is expected to soar to 78 million. Noise-induced hearing loss, which is completely preventable, makes up at least one-third of all hearing loss. Also, fifty million Americans have tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, which can also be caused by loud noise exposure.

To encourage Minnesotans to take care of their hearing, the Sight & Hearing Association ? a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing vision and hearing loss ? is sponsoring free hearing screenings statewide. The goal of the day, proclaimed International Noise Awareness Day, is to educate the public about the dangers of noise to hearing and health.

Susan Lynn, AuD, and Heather Osgood, AuD, both licensed audiologists at Austin Medical Center, will perform free adult hearing screenings at Austin Medical Center on Friday, April 30, from 9 a.m. to Noon and 1 to 5 p.m. To sign up to get your complimentary hearing screening, call 434-1002.

You may have hearing loss if you:
? Frequently ask people to repeat themselves
? Often turn your ear toward a sound to hear it better
? Understand people better when you wear your glasses or look directly at their faces
? Lose your place in group conversations
? Keep the volume on your radio or TV at a level that others say is too loud
? Have pain or ringing in your ears

An annual hearing checkup is a good idea for people age 45 and up, according to Lynn, who specializes in preventing, identifying, assessing, and treating hearing disorders. Lynn can prescribe hearing aids and assistive listening devices and can teach people with hearing loss and their families how to better cope with a hearing loss.

For more information on hearing or to schedule an appointment to get your hearing checked at Austin Medical Center, call 507-433-9088.