Hearing Loss Lawsuits

Losing your hearing can be extremely serious, and may even result in years of isolation or a loss of quality of life because of your inability to socialize and converse with others. There are a variety of reasons that you can lose your hearing, but most often hearing loss accidents occur in the context of construction work or other occupations where there is loud machinery such as industrial plants or factories. Whenever there are loud noises it is important for employers to provide ear protection. A pair of headphones or hearing protection phones can make all the difference in a construction job.

It is an obvious fact that construction is noisy. If you believe that you are starting to lose your hearing, then you should allow your ears to heal by treating them to quiet. If conversations sound muffled to you, or you cannot hear your radio clearly when you turn it on in your car, this is an obvious warning that your hearing is slowly deteriorating. According to the OSHA, hearing loss from construction accidents is not reversible. You cannot take a medication or receive a surgery to restore your hearing you can only prevent it from getting worse.

Regardless of whether or not you have “good hearing” or “no ear problems” you are at risk to losing your hearing if you are constantly exposed to loud levels of noise. Most of the time, hearing loss of this nature is gradual. Hearing aids can’t fix hearing loss, and often lead to subpar hearing. In addition to the possibility of losing your hearing, loud noise levels can cause you to develop tinnitus. This is a noise in your ears which cannot be controlled or cured. This constant ringing will make it difficult for you to sleep and concentrate.

Hearing loss is common at construction sites, but you can also lose your hearing at loud concerts or when a person shoots off a loud gun or rides a loud motorcycle on a regular basis without hearing protection. As well, one single loud boom can be enough to damage a person’s ears in some situations. One study shows that when ears are exposed to 85 decibels of sound for more than 8 hours, it can be extremely damaging, As well, 100 decibels for an hour can do just as much damage, and a sound at 115 decibels for 15 minutes can be devastating to a person’s hearing.

Most of the time, sound is over 85 decibels if you must raise your voice to talk, or if you have a “hear-burn” or a ringing in your ears after moving away from the sound. You should always wear hearing protection when in situations where the sound is over 85 decibels. If you lost your hearing due to on-the-job injury, you may be able to seek worker’s compensation. Talk to a Kansas City personal injury lawyer at the firm today by calling or contacting us online if you want more information!