Noise and neurotoxic chemical exposure relationship to workplace traumatic injuries: a review

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bhattacharya, Amit ; Estill, Cheryl F. ; Morata, Thais C. ; Rice CH
• Description:
  Introduction: More than 5,000 fatalities and eight million injuries occurred in the workplace in 2007 at a cost of $6 billion and $186 billion, respectively. Neurotoxic chemicals are known to affect central nervous system functions among workers, which include balance and hearing disorders. However, it is not known if there is an association between exposure to noise and solvents and acute injuries. Method: A thorough review was conducted of the literature on the relationship between noise or solvent exposures and hearing loss with various health outcomes. Results: The search resulted in 41 studies. Health outcomes included: hearing loss, workplace injuries, absence from work due to sickness, fatalities, hospital admissions due to workplace accidents, traffic accidents, hypertension, balance, slip, trips, or falls, cognitive measures, or disability retirement. Important covariates in these studies were age of employee, type of industry or occupation, or length of employment. Discussion: Most authors that evaluated noise exposure concluded that higher exposure to noise resulted in more of the chosen health effect but the relationship is not well understood. Studies that evaluated hearing loss found that hearing loss was related to occupational injury, disability retirement, or traffic accidents. Studies that assessed both noise exposure and hearing loss as risk factors for occupational injuries reported that hearing loss was related to occupational injuries as much or more than noise exposure. Evidence suggests that solvent exposure is likely to be related to accidents or other health consequences such balance disorders. Conclusions: Many authors reported that noise exposures and hearing loss, respectively, are likely to be related to occupational accidents. Practical applications: The potential significance of the study is that findings could be used by managers to reduce injuries and the costs associated with those injures. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Age Factors Hazardous Substances Hearing Loss Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced Nervous System Noise Noise, Occupational Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Occupational Injuries Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Solvents Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Accidents Age Factors Author Keywords: Workplace Central Nervous System Disorders Chemical Hazards Chemicals Cost Reduction Employee Exposure Hearing Disorders Hearing Loss Injuries Injury Injury Prevention Neurotoxins Noise Exposure Occupational Accidents Occupational Exposure Occupations Risk Factors Solvent Exposure Traumatic Injuries Work Environment Workers' Compensation Workers Compensation Work Experience

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• ISSN:
  0022-4375
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; DART - Division of Applied Research and Technology
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  35-42
• Volume:
  60
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049134
• Citation:
  J Safety Res 2017 Feb; 60:35-42
• Contact Point Address:
  Cheryl Fairfield Estill, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 1090 Tusculum Rd., Cincinnati, OH 45226, United States
• Email:
  clf4@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing ; Wholesale and Retail Trade
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Safety Research
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:29097b30da38b1810008bd7d69fd11da20152dadcb3f0e6b9aac13f6a01f0a9aa0b405f60cae9505fc2e28b502bc91f1e8e0583db39cc57472f4e55683aeb94b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/203692/cdc_203692_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 293.51 KB ]