Evidence-Based Audiology Focus on Hearing Loss Prevention

Details

• Personal Author:
  Morata, Thais C.
• Description:
  Audiologists and other health professionals today share the challenge of dealing with information overload, much of it coming from sources of variable quality. Such exposure to super-abundant information also affects the populations we serve. To complicate things further, we are going through a period of diminished trust in authority and science. So we need to be ready to answer a very basic question: "What is and is not known to work in practice?" (Actually, when we are in the position of being patients ourselves, isn't that what we would want to know about prescribed treatments?) So how can we get to that? How can we be prepared to do our best work and give convincing answers to the people we serve? One approach is to look for sources of information that use a rigorous method to synthesize the knowledge base of a topic. This is what is behind the demand for systematic reviews. Systematic reviews are particularly needed to understand noise exposure in the workplace and corresponding interventions for hearing loss prevention. A Cochrane Systematic Review examined the effectiveness of various interventions to prevent occupational noise-induced hearing loss. The review found that the most common attempt to reduce occupational noise exposure was the distribution of hearing protectors despite the general acceptance that the preferred intervention is engineering noise reduction strategies in the workplace. Regrettably, the Cochrane review found no field studies that evaluated the impact of engineering controls on reducing noise levels, except for one study that indirectly measured the effect of legislation on noise level reduction in the U.S. mining industry. Here's the bottom line, when seeking advice from experts on effective noise control and hearing loss prevention strategies: Ask for evidence that demonstrate the efficiency of their recommendations, and consider the quality of the evidence supporting their recommendations. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Ear Engineering Hearing Hearing Loss Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced Noise Noise, Occupational Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Protective Clothing Quality Control Safety Sense Organs

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• Keywords:
  Auditory System Ear Protection Ear Protectors Engineering Controls Environmental Technology Health Sciences Hearing Loss Hearing Threshold Information Processing Information Systems Intervention Intervention Effectiveness Medical Research Noise Exposure Noise Induced Hearing Loss Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Occupational Hearing Loss Quality Control Safety Research Systematic Reviews

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• ISSN:
  0745-7472
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• 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:
  70
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049744
• Citation:
  Hear J 2017 May; 70(5):41,45
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  The Hearing Journal
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0d8b04cb6b5b54e49aedb61baf24070e9629c035a4ca4a800d1bab664acaf02a08059125ad4e2e56504d4f0d226cb6b7ff63c736a2828c917b30f1a87c8d707e
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/210386/cdc_210386_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 388.09 KB ]