Basically, I was walking to a store when some idiot decided it would be a great idea to rev the engine on his garbage car with a modified exhaust pipe near the entrance. He was doing it on purpose too. He held it down for 3 to 5 seconds, and I was probably about 20 feet away from the car.
I had my earplugs in at the time, which are supposed to provide up to 26 dB of protection. I could not cover my ears with my fingers, so I just had to trust that the earplugs would do what they could. But the exhaust was insanely loud, nothing like a normal car exhaust. It was clearly designed to be as noisy as possible, probably easily over 110 dB. I also cannot guarantee that my earplugs were fully inserted correctly. They are just my usual silicone ones that are easy to remove or put in.
Since that time, the ringing in my ear has increased in volume. I do not think I have developed any new tones, though. I am currently on a course of Prednisone that starts at 60 mg and tapers down over a week. I started this within 24 hours of the noise incident. I do not take Prednisone casually, but I felt this situation warranted it.
Should I be concerned about this? Are there any other actions I should be taking right now to improve my chances of a good outcome?
To be clear, tinnitus is not new to me. I have had it for years after it became significantly worse due to noise-induced mild hearing loss. I have taken steps to prevent it from worsening and to protect my hearing, but there is only so much I can control. Someone doing something this stupid is not something I can plan for perfectly.
Thanks for any suggestions, and if you think I have already taken all the right actions, feel free to let me know that as well.
I had my earplugs in at the time, which are supposed to provide up to 26 dB of protection. I could not cover my ears with my fingers, so I just had to trust that the earplugs would do what they could. But the exhaust was insanely loud, nothing like a normal car exhaust. It was clearly designed to be as noisy as possible, probably easily over 110 dB. I also cannot guarantee that my earplugs were fully inserted correctly. They are just my usual silicone ones that are easy to remove or put in.
Since that time, the ringing in my ear has increased in volume. I do not think I have developed any new tones, though. I am currently on a course of Prednisone that starts at 60 mg and tapers down over a week. I started this within 24 hours of the noise incident. I do not take Prednisone casually, but I felt this situation warranted it.
Should I be concerned about this? Are there any other actions I should be taking right now to improve my chances of a good outcome?
To be clear, tinnitus is not new to me. I have had it for years after it became significantly worse due to noise-induced mild hearing loss. I have taken steps to prevent it from worsening and to protect my hearing, but there is only so much I can control. Someone doing something this stupid is not something I can plan for perfectly.
Thanks for any suggestions, and if you think I have already taken all the right actions, feel free to let me know that as well.
