[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1683 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1683

 Recognizing the Department of Defense for its work in identifying the 
   dangers of tinnitus, or the perception of sound where no external 
source of such sound exists, for members of the Armed Forces subjected 
             to blast injuries and high-decibel equipment.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 29, 2010

Mr. Cole (for himself, Mr. Teague, Ms. Fallin, and Mr. Boren) submitted 
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing the Department of Defense for its work in identifying the 
   dangers of tinnitus, or the perception of sound where no external 
source of such sound exists, for members of the Armed Forces subjected 
             to blast injuries and high-decibel equipment.

Whereas tinnitus, or the perception of sound where no external source of such 
        sound exists, is the most prevalent disabling condition that affects 
        members of the Armed Forces, most notably those members who have been 
        exposed to blast injuries during combat or to other high-noise-level 
        situations;
Whereas tinnitus is the leading service-connected disability for members of the 
        Armed Forces returning from Iraq or Afghanistan and the prevalence of 
        tinnitus is continuing to increase at alarming rates;
Whereas at the end of 2009, more than 750,000 veterans had been determined to 
        have a service-connected disability related to tinnitus;
Whereas an otologic, or ear injury such as tinnitus, has been shown to decrease 
        performance and situational awareness during combat, seriously 
        compromising the ability of a member of the Armed Forces to hear and 
        execute commands properly, thereby jeopardizing not only the affected 
        member but other members as well;
Whereas while certain types of sensory impairment in combat or other military 
        activities may be readily apparent, otologic injuries such as tinnitus 
        may not be easily noticeable, which necessitates the need for more 
        rigorous screening for tinnitus before and after deployment, and for 
        additional research to distinguish tinnitus from other forms of brain 
        injury incurred during combat;
Whereas some medical evidence to date suggests a demonstrated link between 
        tinnitus and posttraumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, 
        such that improved understanding of treatment of tinnitus may also 
        directly advance research efforts to address posttraumatic stress 
        disorder and traumatic brain injury;
Whereas improving the treatment and prevention of tinnitus will benefit all 
        members of the Armed Forces who are increasingly at risk of injury from 
        high-decibel equipment or explosive devices;
Whereas even though there are recommended maximum allowable exposure times, 
        cumulative noise exposure, even at ``safe'' levels, can cause tinnitus 
        over time;
Whereas, in this age of amplified sound, many everyday noise sources produce 
        decibel levels that can be hazardous to hearing and can result in 
        tinnitus and other types of hearing loss;
Whereas the Army is the only branch of the Armed Forces that requires earplugs 
        as part of the uniform, but many types of military equipment exceed the 
        85 DBA limit;
Whereas between all public and private funding in the United States, only 
        $10,000,000 is given to tinnitus research, far behind what is spent on 
        research for most other medical conditions; and
Whereas new, sophisticated brain-imaging technologies have allowed scientists to 
        identify the areas of the brain that involve tinnitus and have led 
        scientists to study tinnitus on several new fronts: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the Department of Defense for its work in 
        identifying the dangers of tinnitus;
            (2) encourages the Department of Defense to continue to 
        educate members of the Armed Forces of the potential threats of 
        unprotected exposure to high-decibel sounds; and
            (3) encourages both the Department of Defense and public 
        institutions to continue their important work researching this 
        medical condition.
                                 <all>