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Smooch! Ear Kisses and Hearing LossPublished: Thursday January 12, 2012, 22:57Imagine giving raspberries to your baby or play- wrestling your toddler. Giving your spouse a smooch, or a goodbye hug to your mom.
Imagine giving raspberries to your baby or play- wrestling your toddler. Giving your spouse a smooch, or a goodbye hug to your mom. These loving gestures are acts we all do to show our feelings to family and friends. We certainly don't mean to inflict harm. But according to Dr. Levi A. Reiter, professor of audiology at Hofstra University, kisses placed near the ear can cause damage.
Case studies
Gail Schwartzman experienced damage to her hearing after being kissed by her four year old daughter. It was the suction of the kiss, rather than the volume of it that inevitably caused the damage. In Schwartzman's case, the damage was pain, decreased hearing, and tinnitus (ringing in her ear). She also experienced ear flutter, a condition which made her feel as if something was loose inside the ear when she would turn her head from side to side. It took many audiological examinations for Dr. Reiter to eliminate acoustical trauma as cause for Ms. Schwartzman's hearing problems. Instead, suction from the kiss was determined to be the most probable cause. The suction, not the sound, caused combined damage to the stapedial ligament, located in the middle ear, as well as damage to the outer hair cells of the inner ear. Dr. Reiter hypothesizes that the suction of the kiss pulled the stapes away from the inner ear causing an overflow of inner ear fluid which permanently damaged the outer hair cells. Without this ligament functioning as it should, too much sound is allowed to enter the inner ear, causing discomfort and sound sensitivity.
Another case involves a gentleman at a family get-together who was kissed by his son-in-law. The kiss, as many kisses among same gender family members go, was first on one cheek, then the other. Except in this case, the kiss recipient moved and the kiss was made to the man's outer ear. After the kiss, the gentleman experienced intense pain. Testing revealed that his existing high frequency loss now included all frequencies. In other words, when before he only had difficulty hearing sh, f, andt sounds, he now has trouble with all speech sounds and even some environmental sounds. Dr. Reiter notes again in this case that it was the suction, not the volume of the kiss that caused damage.
In a third case Dr. Reiter describes a woman who was kissed on both ears by a date and now experiences hearing loss in both ears.
The connection
One might start to wonder how long this phenomenon has been occurring. Have we been unaware of the connection? Three seemingly isolated cases make one believe it could be so. However, since kissing is a common show of affection in almost every culture, it's reasonable to believe that occurrences have happened prior to the three cases mentioned. Dr. Reiter continues to receive calls from those who feel they have hearing loss caused by a kiss near the ear. Other audiologists report similar cases as well. However, none of them, Dr. Reiter included, are ready to say they have all the answers. New patients continue to come in who report similar problems. Dr. Reiter plans to continue investigating the effects of a kiss to the ear, specifically regarding the suction of such a kiss.
Conclusions?
Dr. Reiter wants people to continue showing affection as they have been. There is no reason at this point to stop kissing your loved one. However, placement of that kiss should avoid the ear area. Dr. Reiter states, "My biggest concern as far as warning the public and getting this out is regarding newborns and infants. Mothers and fathers, and even sisters and brothers or grandparents, they love to smooch up that little baby, give him a whole kissing frenzy. And the ear canal of an infant is very small, so the pressure, that negative pressure that is applied to the ear canal is going to have a much greater impact than on an adult. I'm afraid there are infants out there who are experiencing this, but they can't say "Mommy, I can't hear in one ear," and the net result is that five years later, when they have a hearing test, no one will ever know to relate it to a kiss."
As you lean in for that kiss, keep two points in mind: (1) the delicate nature of the ear and how easily the hearing mechanism can be damaged, and (2) keep those smooches away from the ear.
Imagine giving raspberries to your baby or play- wrestling your toddler. Giving your spouse a smooch, or a goodbye hug to your mom. These loving gestures are acts we all do to show our feelings to family and friends. We certainly don't mean to inflict harm. But according to Dr. Levi A. Reiter, professor of audiology at Hofstra University, kisses placed near the ear can cause damage.
Case studies
Gail Schwartzman experienced damage to her hearing after being kissed by her four year old daughter. It was the suction of the kiss, rather than the volume of it that inevitably caused the damage. In Schwartzman's case, the damage was pain, decreased hearing, and tinnitus (ringing in her ear). She also experienced ear flutter, a condition which made her feel as if something was loose inside the ear when she would turn her head from side to side. It took many audiological examinations for Dr. Reiter to eliminate acoustical trauma as cause for Ms. Schwartzman's hearing problems. Instead, suction from the kiss was determined to be the most probable cause. The suction, not the sound, caused combined damage to the stapedial ligament, located in the middle ear, as well as damage to the outer hair cells of the inner ear. Dr. Reiter hypothesizes that the suction of the kiss pulled the stapes away from the inner ear causing an overflow of inner ear fluid which permanently damaged the outer hair cells. Without this ligament functioning as it should, too much sound is allowed to enter the inner ear, causing discomfort and sound sensitivity.
Another case involves a gentleman at a family get-together who was kissed by his son-in-law. The kiss, as many kisses among same gender family members go, was first on one cheek, then the other. Except in this case, the kiss recipient moved and the kiss was made to the man's outer ear. After the kiss, the gentleman experienced intense pain. Testing revealed that his existing high frequency loss now included all frequencies. In other words, when before he only had difficulty hearing sh, f, andt sounds, he now has trouble with all speech sounds and even some environmental sounds. Dr. Reiter notes again in this case that it was the suction, not the volume of the kiss that caused damage.
In a third case Dr. Reiter describes a woman who was kissed on both ears by a date and now experiences hearing loss in both ears.
The connection
One might start to wonder how long this phenomenon has been occurring. Have we been unaware of the connection? Three seemingly isolated cases make one believe it could be so. However, since kissing is a common show of affection in almost every culture, it's reasonable to believe that occurrences have happened prior to the three cases mentioned. Dr. Reiter continues to receive calls from those who feel they have hearing loss caused by a kiss near the ear. Other audiologists report similar cases as well. However, none of them, Dr. Reiter included, are ready to say they have all the answers. New patients continue to come in who report similar problems. Dr. Reiter plans to continue investigating the effects of a kiss to the ear, specifically regarding the suction of such a kiss.
Conclusions?
Dr. Reiter wants people to continue showing affection as they have been. There is no reason at this point to stop kissing your loved one. However, placement of that kiss should avoid the ear area. Dr. Reiter states, "My biggest concern as far as warning the public and getting this out is regarding newborns and infants. Mothers and fathers, and even sisters and brothers or grandparents, they love to smooch up that little baby, give him a whole kissing frenzy. And the ear canal of an infant is very small, so the pressure, that negative pressure that is applied to the ear canal is going to have a much greater impact than on an adult. I'm afraid there are infants out there who are experiencing this, but they can't say "Mommy, I can't hear in one ear," and the net result is that five years later, when they have a hearing test, no one will ever know to relate it to a kiss."
As you lean in for that kiss, keep two points in mind: (1) the delicate nature of the ear and how easily the hearing mechanism can be damaged, and (2) keep those smooches away from the ear.
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