Abstract Background The use of smart devices and their related accessories have become an indispensable part of daily life Extended use of earphones has been strongly associated with an elevated risk of hearing loss, primarily due to continuous exposure to high-intensity noise. Although previous studies have reported symptoms such as tinnitus and hearing problems, most of the available data are limited by small sample sizes and subjective responses. For this reason, we conducted this study to assess the impact of prolonged use of earphones on ear health and auditory function among medical students at Damietta University. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study among medical students at Damietta University. Participants provided data on earphone-use patterns and auditory symptoms through a validated questionnaire. Among the 300 earphone users, 90 participants consented to audiological evaluation and underwent hearing assessment using the Five-Minute Hearing Test, Hear WHO application, Siemens Hear Check™, and pure-tone audiometry as the reference standard. Data were analyzed using SPSS (v27), with significance set at p ≤ 0.05. Results The sample included 340 students, with a high prevalence of earphone use (88.2%). Earphone users reported more symptoms overall, particularly tinnitus, which showed a significant difference from non-users. Higher listening volumes were significantly associated with increased symptom frequency, whereas the duration and frequency of earphone use showed no statistically significant associations. Furthermore, regular listening breaks were associated with fewer self-reported hearing changes, while increasing the volume in noisy environments was associated with a higher prevalence of symptoms. Conclusion No confirmed hearing loss was observed; however, we found that prolonged earphone use among medical students is associated with increased auditory symptoms. These findings indicate a potential risk, emphasizing the need for preventive strategies to protect hearing health.
El-Ekiaby et al. (Thu,) studied this question.