Integrating User Voice In Hearing Care With Focus On Off-Duty Warfighter

Introduction:Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) is a growing public health concern in the USA and globally because of the emergence of lifestyle preferences and environmental exposures to sound levels exceeding safe listening limits for extended periods of time. In the military, hearing and communication are important for survival and the Department of Defense's Hearing Center of Excellence highlights the importance of protection from NIHL. Issuance of the World health organization safe audio listening standards along with existing U.S. federal and military standards provides a framework for developing an accessible tool for promoting safe listening.Methods:An App is being proposed for an aggregated assessment of a user's daily sound exposure, through personal audio system and ambient sources and providing tools for managing personal sound exposures. The key elements for development of App features were integration of user voice for functionalities, computations based on global standards, including military, for safe listening and alignment with regulatory standards for Apps.Results:Features of the App are "Track" for audio and ambient exposures, "Compute" for real-time and cumulative exposures vs. safe listening standards, "Alert" for unsafe exposures using visual and haptic, "Inform" for personal exposures vs. safe dose, associated NIHL risk and education, "Choice" for alternatives that can be relatable to personal lifestyle, and "Share" for informing others as determined by the user. App safety is ensured by privacy and cybersecurity regulatory standards.Conclusion:The overall goals of the App are to increase NIHL awareness and to empower users to improve personal listening behaviors that can potentially reduce the risk of NIHL.