Auditory risk estimates for youth target shooting

Details

• Personal Author:
  Finan, Donald S. ; Flamme, Gregory A. ; Jerome TW ; Lankford, James E. ; Meinke, Deanna K. ; Murphy, William J. ; Soendergaard J ; Stewart M
• Description:
  Objective: To characterize the impulse noise exposure and auditory risk for youth recreational firearm users engaged in outdoor target shooting events. The youth shooting positions are typically standing or sitting at a table, which places the firearm closer to the ground or reflective surface when compared to adult shooters. Design: Acoustic characteristics were examined and the auditory risk estimates were evaluated using contemporary damage-risk criteria for unprotected adult listeners and the 120-dB peak limit suggested by the World Health Organization (1999) for children. Study sample: Impulses were generated by 26 firearm/ammunition configurations representing rifles, shotguns, and pistols used by youth. Measurements were obtained relative to a youth shooter's left ear. Results: All firearms generated peak levels that exceeded the 120 dB peak limit suggested by the WHO for children. In general, shooting from the seated position over a tabletop increases the peak levels, LAeq8 and reduces the unprotected maximum permissible exposures (MPEs) for both rifles and pistols. Pistols pose the greatest auditory risk when fired over a tabletop. Conclusion: Youth should utilize smaller caliber weapons, preferably from the standing position, and always wear hearing protection whenever engaging in shooting activities to reduce the risk for auditory damage. Description provided by NIOSH
• Subjects:
  • Adolescent
  • Environmental Monitoring
  • Hearing Loss
  • Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced
  • Noise
  • Occupational Health
  • Risk Assessment
  • Safety
• Keywords:
  • Impulse-noise
  • Noise-exposure
  • Adolescents
  • Auditory-system
  • Outdoors
  • Children
  • Risk-analysis
  • Exposure-assessment
  • Noise-induced-hearing-loss
  • Noise-analysis
  More +
• ISSN:
  1499-2027
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; Illinois ; Michigan ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DART - Division of Applied Research and Technology
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  53
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20043875
• Citation:
  Int J Audiol 2014 Mar; 53(S2):S16-S25
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction ; Manufacturing
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Audiology
• Supplement:
  S2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/199749/cdc_199749_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 655.96 KB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:38c68bf24f4cf8eb0d0cf1552848418d4ae8c96021ecd41e4009ebde86b1c740a7066865065e746eec50983aa4a914ee7f4ff0658a8100ac722013661bb86ca9