Blades of glory: noise exposure of hockey officials

Details

• Personal Author:
  Brazile W ; Johnesee K ; Lipsey T ; Sanfort D
• Description:
  Introduction: According to National USA Hockey League, tens of thousands of hockey officials could be affected by noise induced hearing loss. For this study, personal noise dosimeters and a sound level meter were used to record noise exposures during hockey games for the 2014 season. The aim of this project was to fill the current gaps in research by increasing sample size and sampling at a larger arena than the pilot study. Methods: A total of 30 personal samples and 20 area samples were collected. The study was completed in December, 2014. Results were compared to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL), American Conference of Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Threshold Limit Value (TLV), and World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and standards. Results: Noise dose was reported for each official at each game to determine if noise controls needed to be put in place at this specific venue. Five officials were overexposed to noise according to the OSHA standard (90dBA). All referees and linesmen were overexposed to noise according to the ACGIH and WHO recommendations (85 dBA). In addition to area and personal monitoring, the number of whistle blows was counted during the first period of four games to get an average number of whistles blown per game. According to previous researchers, whistle blows are one of the loudest and closest noise sources to referees with some whistles reaching sound levels of 116 dBA. Conclusion: Based on the results, it is recommended that this venue take preventative action in reducing noise exposure for hockey referees and future research should focus on implementing control measures in hockey arenas. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Athletes Environmental Exposure Hearing Hearing Loss Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced Noise Noise, Occupational Occupational Health Radiation Dosimeters Safety
• Keywords:
  Dosimetry Education And Research Centers Entertainment Industry Entertainment Workers ERCs Exposure Assessment Exposure Levels Exposure Limits Hearing Level Hearing Loss Hearing Protection Noise Control Noise Exposure Noise Induced Hearing Loss Noise Levels PELs Permissible Exposure Limits Sampling Sound Analyzers Sports Medicine Threshold Limit Values TLV

  More +
• Publisher:
  The Mountain and Plains Education and Research Center (MAP ERC)
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20047909
• Citation:
  Denver, CO: University of Colorado, 2015 Apr; :1
• Contact Point Address:
  Kate Johnesee, Colorado State University
• Email:
  MAPERC@ucdenver.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• Performing Organization:
  University of Colorado, Denver
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20070701
• Source Full Name:
  The Mountain and Plains Education and Research Center, Annual Meeting, March 2013
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:32ffcd5c76d45a38990362cf64ecaece20f445ceee8a6cf3b886a7c8851e7c85acd98ecbeb63f2d18dc5082b2c736a73d806773aef7207e7ec7d41707c9d0f58
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202848/cdc_202848_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 45.28 KB ]