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Audio analgesia: safety standards adopted by Council on Dental Therapeutics
102/420 • THE J O U R N A L O F TH E A M E R IC A N DENTAL A S S O C IA T IO N
Audio analgesia: safety standards adopted by Council on Dental Therapeutics
Ever since audio analgesia was first announced in 1959, interest in its possibilities has m ounted increasingly b o th am ong dentists and am ong sound engineers. Scarcely a m onth goes by th at a new sound device is not offered the profession. Although the psychophysiological usefulness of some of these appliances has been dem onstrated, the same cannot always be said of their safety. In November 1960 t h e j o u r n a l cautioned, editorially, against the use of audio analgesic devices, the safety of which was not known. Specific w arning was m ade concerning the possibility of hearing dam age resulting from the im proper use or design of sound devices. N ext m onth’s issue of t h e j o u r n a l will carry a comprehensive report on audio analgesia prepared by the Council on D ental T herapeutics. T his report includes a review of the available laboratory and clinical d ata on the phenom enon of audio analgesia and detailed standards for th e safe use and design of audio analgesia equipm ent. T w o features of the forthcom ing Council report deserve special mention. First is its excellence. Those who reviewed the report unanim ously support it as a thorough and obj’ective approach to the problem. Second is its authorship. T he discussion part of the report was prepared by the C ouncil; the safety standards were prepared by two authorities in the physiology of hearing. Both authorities, members of the m edical profession, willingly devoted considerable tim e and effort in developing a superb set of safety standards. These standards constitute a m onum ent to the beneficial relation ship which dentistry enjoys w ith its sister profession. T h e report will serve two purposes. I t will provide members of the profession and other interested individuals w ith the opinions of the Council on the m atter of audio analgesia. F urther, it will provide a means of determ ining the safety of a given make of device. T hus, a dentist who contem plates purchasing one of these devices can obtain guidance in his selection. T h e Council on D ental Therapeutics continues in its belief th at further clinical d ata m ust be acquired before it can assess the degree of usefulness of audio analgesia devices. A t present it feels th a t w hatever usefulness these devices may have is dependent to some extent upon diversionary or similar psychophysiological factors. Therefore, unless unw arranted claims are m ade in prom otion, this type of equipm ent will be excluded from the Council’s classification program for the tim e being. T he Council will review new d ata on audio analgesia as they become available and, as necessary, issue fu rth er inform ation on this interesting topic. T h e D epartm ent of Advertising and Exhibits of the Association will consider audio analgesia devices eligible for advertising and exhibition, provided (1) the devices are certified by a designated testing laboratory to meet the physical standards adopted by the Council on D ental T herapeutics; (2) the devices are accom panied by direc tions for use w hich conform to the safety standards, and (3) the prom otional claims for the devices are limited to those related to psychophysiological factors, such as diversion. Persons wishing to have their audio .analgesic appliances listed as eligible for prom otion in Association m edia should address their requests to the D irector of Advertising and Exhibits a t the C entral Office of the Association.
Audio analgesia: safety standards adopted by Council on Dental Therapeutics
Ever since audio analgesia was first announced in 1959, interest in its possibilities has m ounted increasingly b o th am ong dentists and am ong sound engineers. Scarcely a m onth goes by th at a new sound device is not offered the profession. Although the psychophysiological usefulness of some of these appliances has been dem onstrated, the same cannot always be said of their safety. In November 1960 t h e j o u r n a l cautioned, editorially, against the use of audio analgesic devices, the safety of which was not known. Specific w arning was m ade concerning the possibility of hearing dam age resulting from the im proper use or design of sound devices. N ext m onth’s issue of t h e j o u r n a l will carry a comprehensive report on audio analgesia prepared by the Council on D ental T herapeutics. T his report includes a review of the available laboratory and clinical d ata on the phenom enon of audio analgesia and detailed standards for th e safe use and design of audio analgesia equipm ent. T w o features of the forthcom ing Council report deserve special mention. First is its excellence. Those who reviewed the report unanim ously support it as a thorough and obj’ective approach to the problem. Second is its authorship. T he discussion part of the report was prepared by the C ouncil; the safety standards were prepared by two authorities in the physiology of hearing. Both authorities, members of the m edical profession, willingly devoted considerable tim e and effort in developing a superb set of safety standards. These standards constitute a m onum ent to the beneficial relation ship which dentistry enjoys w ith its sister profession. T h e report will serve two purposes. I t will provide members of the profession and other interested individuals w ith the opinions of the Council on the m atter of audio analgesia. F urther, it will provide a means of determ ining the safety of a given make of device. T hus, a dentist who contem plates purchasing one of these devices can obtain guidance in his selection. T h e Council on D ental Therapeutics continues in its belief th at further clinical d ata m ust be acquired before it can assess the degree of usefulness of audio analgesia devices. A t present it feels th a t w hatever usefulness these devices may have is dependent to some extent upon diversionary or similar psychophysiological factors. Therefore, unless unw arranted claims are m ade in prom otion, this type of equipm ent will be excluded from the Council’s classification program for the tim e being. T he Council will review new d ata on audio analgesia as they become available and, as necessary, issue fu rth er inform ation on this interesting topic. T h e D epartm ent of Advertising and Exhibits of the Association will consider audio analgesia devices eligible for advertising and exhibition, provided (1) the devices are certified by a designated testing laboratory to meet the physical standards adopted by the Council on D ental T herapeutics; (2) the devices are accom panied by direc tions for use w hich conform to the safety standards, and (3) the prom otional claims for the devices are limited to those related to psychophysiological factors, such as diversion. Persons wishing to have their audio .analgesic appliances listed as eligible for prom otion in Association m edia should address their requests to the D irector of Advertising and Exhibits a t the C entral Office of the Association.