![]() What Noises Cause Hearing Loss? Retrieved from Ĭooper Safety Supply. Retrieved from Ĭenters for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from ĭepartment of Defense Hearing Center of Excellence. 3M Completes Acquisition of Aearo Technologies Inc. Per the provided instructions, one side of the dual-ended earplug got inserted into the ear canal to provide a tight seal that would protect the inner ear from. Heritage of Army Audiology and the Road Ahead: The Army Hearing Program. Hearing loss associated with US military combat deployment. The Correlation of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory with Depression and Anxiety in Veterans with Tinnitus. The impact of hearing impairment and noise-induced hearing injury on quality of life in the active-duty military population: challenges to the study of this issue. Hearing loss, tinnitus and other hearing. In the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina Columbia Division. The dual-ended Combat Arms earplugs filled an immediate need for hearing protection for servicemen and women. 3M Company Agrees to Pay $9.1 Million to Resolve Allegations That it Supplied the United States With Defective Dual-Ended Combat Arms Earplugs. The two ends of the earplug are distinguished by two different colors: olive and yellow. This type of plug is called a non-linear, selective attenuation earplug. Hundreds of vets are suing over these defective combat earplugs. Aearo/3M specially designed these dual-ended Combat Arms earplugs to provide two options for sound reduction depending on which end a soldier places in the ear. Army Vet Blames Earplug Maker for Hearing Damage. Combat Veteran Sues 3M Over Defective Hearing Plugs. The defective earplugs are known as Dual-Ended Combat Arms Earplugs and were part of 3Ms Military Combat Safety Gear line. Soldiers thought they were protected from dangerous levels of noise, but they were actually at risk for hearing loss and tinnitus.ģM resolved the allegations by paying a $9.1 million settlement, though it did not admit fault. Specifically, “the basal edge of the third flange of the noninserted end of the earplug is prone to press against some wearers’ ear canals and fold back to its original shape, thereby loosening the seal.” “Because the stem of the dual-ended earplug is too short, it is difficult to insert the plug deeply into some wearer’s ear canals and obtain a proper fit,” the lawsuit said. The earplugs only achieved 22 NRR when they fit perfectly into the ear canal, but defects made the earplugs loose. Tests run by Aearo suggested the true NRR of the olive end was 10.9, while the NNR of the yellow end was -2.Ī -2 NRR would amplify sound, instead of keeping it out. While Aearo/3M claimed its product had an NRR of 22 for the olive end and 0 for the yellow end, the Moldex lawsuit claimed that product defects led to lower NRRs.
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