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Are noise-cancelling headphones to blame for young people's hearing problems?

More young people are presenting to audiology teams in England with difficulty processing sound.

Having grown up on a peaceful farm in the countryside, it wasn't until a few years ago when Sophie started university in London that she noticed a change in her hearing - specifically trouble identifying where a sound was coming from. A UK-wide survey from 2024, distributed by the BAA and ENT UK, the professional body representing ear, nose and throat surgery, found that only 4% of audiologists consider themselves to be well-informed on APD. And, for those who are 16 years and over, the Royal National ENT and Eastman Hospital is the only NHS provider in England offering a full APD assessment and the waiting list is nine months long.

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