The dose-response relationship between in-ear occupational noise exposure and hearing loss

Details

• Personal Author:
  Clougherty JE ; Dixon-Ernst C ; Galusha D ; Neitzel RL ; Rabinowitz PM
• Description:
  Objectives: Current understanding of the dose-response relationship between occupational noise and hearing loss is based on cross-sectional studies prior to the widespread use of hearing protection, and with limited data regarding noise exposures below 85 dBA. We report on the hearing loss experience of a unique cohort of industrial workers, with daily monitoring of noise inside of hearing protection devices. Methods: At an industrial facility, workers exhibiting accelerated hearing loss were enrolled in a mandatory programme to monitor daily noise exposures inside of hearing protection. We compared these noise measurements (as time-weighted LAVG) to interval rates of high-frequency hearing loss over a 6-year period using a mixed-effects model, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: Workers' high-frequency hearing levels at study inception averaged more than 40 dB Hearing threshold level (HTL). Most noise exposures were less than 85 dBA (mean LAVG 76 dBA, IQR 74-80 dBA). We found no statistical relationship between LAvg and high-frequency hearing loss ( p=0.53). Using a metric for monthly maximum noise exposure did not improve model fit. Conclusions: At-ear noise exposures below 85 dBA did not show an association with risk of high-frequency hearing loss among workers with substantial past noise exposure and hearing loss at baseline. Therefore, effective noise control to below 85 dBA may lead to significant reduction in occupational hearing loss risk in such individuals. Further research is needed on the dose-response relationship of noise and hearing loss in individuals with normal hearing and little prior noise exposure. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Ear Environmental Exposure Environmental Monitoring Hearing Hearing Loss Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Noise Noise, Occupational Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Safety Sense Organs Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Dose-response Ears Employee-exposure Exposure-assessment Exposure-levels Hearing-level Hearing-loss Hearing-protection Hearing-threshold Industrial-environment Industrial-exposures Industrial-factory-workers Monitoring-systems Noise-control Noise-exposure Noise-frequencies Noise-induced-hearing-loss Noise-levels Noise-measurement Time-weighted-average-exposure Workplace-studies

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• ISSN:
  1351-0711
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Connecticut ; Michigan ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  70
• Issue:
  10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20043327
• Citation:
  Occup Environ Med 2013 Oct; 70(10):716-721
• Contact Point Address:
  Dr. Peter M Rabinowitz, Occupational and Environmental Medicine Program, Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, 135 College Street, 3rd Floor, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
• Email:
  peter.rabinowitz@yale.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing
• Performing Organization:
  Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20070701
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20170630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2a362a350d699d9c3c56ff20fcc5c8de6bdff9c2746ae19de8781ee940f933c41d57c1ae681ca91431dd6c513701cea2d2bb54c14fd08b8a383cf9a9067f2864
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/195250/cdc_195250_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 203.20 KB ]