Noise-related hearing loss with children is associated with headphones, Reuters reports.

A Dutch research team looked at hearing results for 3,316 children ages 9 to 11. The results show that 443 children, or 14 percent, had at least some difficulty hearing at high frequencies. High frequency hearing loss, especially in younger people, is often caused by noise exposure.

This hearing impairment is already present prior to exposure to known noise hazards, such as club and concert attendance, and may have lifelong consequences, read the conclusions of the study .

"Although we can not conclude from this study that music players caused these hearing losses, it shows that music exposure may affect hearing at a young age," said Dr. Carlijn le Clercq of Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam.

"This is important, because hearing loss is irreversible and thus has lifelong consequences," said Clercq by email.
 

Results of the study were published in JAMA Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery