Noise@Manchester

An extensive Medical Research Council programme investigating the diverse impacts of noise on the ears and auditory nervous system.

In partnership with the University of Nottingham, our research studies address crucial unanswered questions:

• Just how damaging are concerts, nightclubs, and earphones?
• Which parts of the ears and nervous system are affected?
• Who is most at risk, and when?

We test for hearing damage that would not show up on standard hearing tests, using electrophysiology, high-frequency measures, and brain imaging.

Our participants include teenagers, concert-goers, people with tinnitus, and noise-exposed workers. Online listening tests let us look at hearing worldwide.

Unlike most noise research, we track hearing over time, giving a much clearer picture of the effects of noise.