Cerebral Tuberculosis in an Active-duty Military Officer That Led to Tinnitus From a TB Brain Abscess; A Case Report; Case Report.

Tuberculosis has been a pertinent public health problem for both developing and developed nations. For developed nations, military personal has the higher risk since they do travel to developing nations to embark on their duties. Cerebral tuberculosis is rare and if they occur, they tend to manifest as either meningitis or tuberculoma. Tinnitus is more likely in men particularly persons exposed to loud noises along with other causes. We present a case of cerebral tuberculosis induced tinnitus in a 26-year-old male army officer who presented with a one-week episode of convulsive crises and loss of consciousness after being exposed to a loud noise while on duty. Cranial MRI showed right temporo-parietal and left parietal finger-like hyper-signals with edema on Flair and T2. However, brain CT-scan showed right parieto-temporal and left parietal sub cortical hypodensities and finger-like borders without contrast re-uptake. There was strong suspicion for TB brain abscess leading to a possible manifestation of tinnitus in this patient.Case presentationA 26-year-old male army officer presented with chief complaints of convulsive crisis and loss of consciousness when he heard a loud noise while on duty. He fell to the ground and was found unconscious and drooling by a colleague. He was immediately transferred by non-medical means to our hospital for management. The patient experienced rigidity as well as uncontrolled muscle spasms leading to jerky motions which lasted for about one to two minutes and occurred two hours before admission in a non-febrile context. The convulsive crises occurred two hours prior to admission in a non-febrile state. The patient was then worked up for review of systems (ROS)- SpO2 was 98%; RR was 24 cpm, BP = 125/91 mmHg, Pulse =103 bpm, Glasgow coma scale = 15/15, isochoric iso-reactive pupils, blood sugar = 1,11 g/l; Temperature = 37°C. No motor or sensitive deficits, no meningeal signs, no former convulsive crisis, there was symmetry for chest movements, no signs of respiratory distress, resonant percussion sounds. Also, there was no urine incontinence, dysuria, scrotal swelling and external genitalia deformations. No peripheral lymph nodes (cervical, axillary, inguinal) were palpable.Upon checking the labs, WBC: 5.05, HGB: 12.4 g/l, PLT: 313,000 electrolyte panel reveals all normal except moderate hypomagnesemia. HIV 1 and 2 serology was negative, Cardiovascular examination shows PPP, audible heart sounds at all four auscultation points, no MGR and RRR. On respiratory exam; there were no signs of distress, no tracheal deviation, resonant to percussion, CTAB and no CVAT. On abdominal exam; no HSM and normal bowel movement and sounds. Finally, Neurological; no acute distress (NAD), AAOx3, CN 2-12 intact, MME is normal, recall is 3/3, coordination and concentration intact, follows command and no motor or sensory deficits. Did bronchi fibroscopy along with broncho-alveolar lavage, in search of TB by PCR.ConclusionTinnitus remains the second most prevalent service-connected disability. Patients with cerebral TB abscess are at increased risk for this condition.

Medical debates and musical interpretations of vibroacoustic disease in Vieques, Puerto Rico

In 2001 the band Cornucopia (Puerto Rican musicians Jorge Castro and Claudio Chea) released an album called "Vibroacústica". The title refers to a disease that allegedly afflicts people who have been exposed to loud noise over long periods of time. The vibrations thicken the walls of the heart, so the theory goes, and damage the immune, gastrointestinal, and neurological systems. This is noise as toxin, entering and sickening the body. The album takes the disease as its point of departure, and using location recordings of the coast of Puerto Rico, analog synthetic manipulations and digital processing, both recreates and protests the noise and its impact on human beings in Vieques, Puerto Rico, which was the target of bombing practice for over sixty years. This paper argues that the album subverts the idea of the preservation of a soundscape and instead reinterprets the sonic violence of occupation with the tweets, chirps and burbles of its soundtracks.

Design of a Microcontroller Based Community Security System for Developing Nations

There can never be any time in the history of mankind that issue of community security secures the rapt attentions of all and sundries. It is believed in many security circles that the upsurge may not be unconnected from craves for materialism, ubiquitous social media technologies and a breakdown in citizen’s value systems. The design uses an AtMega328P based Microcontroller to develop the security system. It uses Photosensitive and Passive Infrared devices as sensors. Codes were written and compiled. Simulation was done using Proteus while implementation was achieved on breadboard. The system operates each time an intruder is sensed; with the presence of any burglar, a buzzer sounds an alarm and security lighting system switch on for five minutes. A 16 by 2 LCD unit displays the state of the machine. It is believed undoubtedly that the loud noise from the buzzer will keep awake the domestic buildings’ occupants and other security conscious neighbours thereby scaring away the unwanted guests.

Design and fabrication of active noise control system for a grass cutter

Active noise control technique was used to reduce noise generated by a grass cutting machine. Grass cutting machine running on a diesel engine generates loud noise of about 105 dBA. Based on the spectral analysis of engine noise, it was observed that frequencies in the range of 440–5000 Hz were having more noise power. An active noise control circuit was designed and fabricated using operational amplifiers. The active noise control circuit was tested with the help of a duct made of thermocol. Results show that reduction in noise up to 10 dBA was obtained when the active noise control circuit was used with a duct made of thermocol, while a reduction up to 5 dBA was obtained when used on a grass cutting machine. The active noise control system developed may be used to reduce noise generated by a grass cutting machine.

Noise Exposure

Noise exposure is a basic concept used to assess the risk of noise induced hearing loss in the workplace. It is very important, since loud noise is omnipresent in almost all human activity, especially in industry, construction, mining and transportation. The question to answer is how to determine the risk of a person performing in an environment where the noise levels, duration and frequency content change with time. The answer is obtained by measuring his noise exposure. Although the measurement itself is not complex or difficult, a proper knowledge of what exactly is the noise exposure and how to deal with the measurement result in fundamental to avoid getting wrong conclusions.

Exploding Head Syndrome Accompanied by Repeating Panic Attacks: A Case Report

To the best of our knowledge, we report here for the first time a case of exploding head syndrome (EHS) that caused repeating panic attacks. A 62-year-old woman experienced a sudden sensation of a loud noise just before going to sleep. The frequency of these episodes rapidly increased to multiple times per night, and she soon began to fear sleep, which led to the occurrence of nighttime panic attacks. She was diagnosed with EHS at our sleep clinic, and clonazepam was prescribed accompanied by reassurance about the benign nature of this syndrome. The intensity of the loud noise gradually reduced, and her fear of sleep and panic attacks disappeared at around the same time. In this report, we argue the importance of gaining further knowledge about EHS, including that about complicating psychiatric symptoms and that about its treatment.

Audiological and noise exposure findings among members of a brazilian folklore music group

BACKGROUND: Musicians and dancers can be considered an at-risk population for developing noise-induced hearing loss. OBJECTIVES: To determine the audiological profile of members of a folklore-related music group and quantify noise exposure at their rehearsal venue. METHODS: This was a quantitative and descriptive study. The musicians and dancers were evaluated in two stages: an interview about their working life, followed by high frequency tonal audiometry. The sound pressure level in the group’s rehearsal venue was measured using a BEK 2270 Noise Analyzer. RESULTS: A total of 7.2% of the subjects had noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) and 39% of the audiometric tests were notch type. During the interview 31.7% of the subjects mentioned discomfort from loud noise, although none of them used ear protection. The environmental assessment showed inadequate humidity and oscillating temperature. Twenty sound pressure level measurements were performed for Leq (equivalent sound pressure levels) and the results ranged from 88 dB (A) to 99 dB (A) with a mean of 97.05. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to high levels of sound pressure has led to NIHL in some members of the group. Some of those with normal hearing also presented a notch configuration characteristic of NIHL. Tinnitus, indicating that a change in hearing has occurred, was the most frequent auditory symptom.

Rozważania nad etymologią gromu

The Polish appellative grom m. ‘thunderclap’ (< Proto-Slavic *gromъ m. ‘thunder, thunderclap, roar of a thunder’) should be associated with Greek βρόμος m. ‘any loud noise; crackling of fi re; roar of a thunder; roaring of a storm; rage, fury’. Both these nouns derive from the Proto-Indo-European archetype *gu̯ rómos m. ‘loud noise; thunder, thunderclap, roar of a thunder’ (originally nomen actionis with the meaning ‘roaring; thundering’, derived from the root *gu̯ rem- ‘to roar, to thunder’, cf. Gk. βρέμω ‘to roar; to clash, ring (of arms); to shout, rage (of men)’, pol. grzmieć ‘to thunder’). The comparison of PSl. *gromъ with Gk. χρόμος m. ‘neighing or whinnying (of horse)’ is semantically doubtful.

Occupational Exposures and Ischaemic Heart Disease: Results from The Entire New Zealand Population

IntroductionIschaemic Heart Disease (IHD) is a leading cause of death in Western countries. Common occupational exposures such as loud noise, long working hours, and sedentary work have been associated with increased IHD risks, but inconsistently. Objectives and ApproachThis study examines associations between incident IHD and exposure to long working hours, sedentary work, and loud noise. Individual-level microdata from Statistics New Zealand Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI) were extracted for adults (age 20-64 years) with occupation recorded on the 2013 Census. The number of working hours was extracted from the Census, and exposure to sedentary work and loud noise was assessed through job exposure matrices (JEMs). IHD events (from 2013 to end of 2018) were identified using hospitalisations, prescriptions and deaths. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using cox regression adjusted for age, socioeconomic status, and smoking. Results were stratified by sex and ethnicity. ResultsA total of 20,610 IHD cases were identified from 1,594,680 individuals employed at time of Census. Both short (<35) and long (55+) working hours were associated with an increased IHD risk in crude analyses, but effects disappeared after adjustment for age and socioeconomic status. For females, sedentary work (>90% of the time compared to <50%) was associated with a reduced risk (HR(Non-Māori)=0.86, 95%CI=0.75-0.99; HR(Māori)=0.71, 95%CI=0.44-1.14). For males, exposure to the highest noise category (>90dBA) compared to no exposure (<80dBA) was associated with elevated HRs without reaching statistical significance (HR(Non-Māori)=1.12, 95%CI=0.96-1.29; HR(Māori)=1.25, 95%CI=0.89-1.75). For females exposure to the 80-85dBA category compared to no exposure also showed elevated HRs (HR(Non-Māori)=1.14; 95%CI=1.04-1.26; HR(Māori)=1.16; 95%CI=0.93-1.46), but too few females were employed in jobs with the highest noise exposure. ConclusionThese preliminary analyses do not support sedentary work or long working hours as IHD risk factors, but do suggest a modest increase in IHD risk associated with occupational exposure to noise.