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Tinnitus Clarified

Encyclopedia category

Noise law, benefits & hearing protection

12 headwords: 11 articles, 1 entry, 0 definitions

This category covers the practical and legal side of noise and hearing: the rules on noise at work and the rights they give workers, disability benefits and claims for tinnitus, including claims by veterans, and the hearing protection used at work, at concerts and at home, from earplugs to in-ear monitors.

Rules and benefit systems differ from country to country and change over time, so the pages name the country and the source they describe. They explain how the systems work; they are not legal advice about any particular claim, and the people who run a scheme are the ones to ask about a case.

If you are protecting your hearing, start with the earplug pages and the noise dose calculator; if you are making a claim, start with the disability claims guide. The headwords below are listed A to Z, each marked as a full article, a shorter entry or a glossary definition.

Every headword, A to Z

  • Dental professionals and hearing riskArticle

    High-speed handpieces and ultrasonic scalers add up over a career — practical hearing protection that doesn't interfere with patient care.

  • Earbuds and headphonesArticle

    Over a billion young people may be at risk of hearing loss from unsafe listening. The WHO volume and time limits, and what they mean for earbuds.

  • Earplug overuseArticle

    Hearing protection prevents damage in loud settings — but wearing it constantly, even somewhere quiet, can make sound sensitivity worse.

  • EarplugsArticle

    Eargasm, Etymotic ER20XS, Earasers — NRR ratings compared, and why high-fidelity earplugs protect hearing without making music sound muffled.

  • Hunters and shootersArticle

    A single unprotected gunshot is loud enough to cause permanent tinnitus, yet most hunters skip hearing protection. The real numbers, and what helps.

  • In-ear monitorsArticle

    In-ear monitors can protect musicians' hearing, but only with volume discipline: in one study, musicians chose nearly the same level as with floor wedges.

  • Industrial workersArticle

    What OSHA requires of US employers once workplace noise reaches 85 dB, what the UK's Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 require, and how to use both.

  • Noise-cancelling headphonesArticle

    Noise-cancelling headphones don't cause tinnitus and can help by enabling lower volumes — but the silence they create can also make tinnitus more noticeable.

  • Tinnitus disability claimsArticle

    Tinnitus is the most common VA-compensated disability in the US — how the claims process works, plus a look at the UK, Canada, and Australia.

  • VA diagnostic code 6260 (tinnitus)Entry

    The line in the US veterans' disability rating schedule that gives recurrent tinnitus a single flat rating, one ear or both, and leaves out objective tinnitus.

  • VeteransArticle

    Tinnitus is VA's most prevalent service-connected disability: 3,583,295 among compensation recipients in fiscal year 2025. What Diagnostic Code 6260 says — and doesn't.

  • Workplace accommodationsArticle

    Severe tinnitus can qualify for formal workplace accommodations under US law — here's what that process involves.

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