The cochleogram of the guinea pig.

The cochleogram is an important tool to relate properties of the cochlea (e.g. hair cell loss, damaged hair cells) to their position in the cochlear turns, to calculate the average hair cell density, and to measure the length of the whole cochlea.

Frequency-specific cochlear damage in guinea pig after exposure to different types of realistic industrial noise.

For the causal evaluation of occupational hearing damage it is important to identify definitely the noise source. Here we tested, whether recordings of distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) in awake guinea pigs can distinguish the effects of different industrial noises. Six groups of 12 animals each were investigated before and over four months after a single 2 h exposure to specific, played-back industrial noise as well as before and for 2 months after impulse noise exposure.