Details:

Alternative Title:
Ear Hear
Personal Author:
Sayler, Stephanie K. ; Rabinowitz, Peter M. ; Galusha, Deron H. ; Sun, Kan ; Neitzel, Richard L.
Sayler, Stephanie K. ; Rabinowitz, Peter M. ; Galusha, Deron H. ; Sun, Kan ; Neitzel, Richard L. Less -
Description:
Objectives

This study utilized personal noise measurements and fit-testing in order to evaluate the association between noise exposures and personal attenuation rating (PAR) values among participating workers, and second, to compare the attenuated exposure levels received by the workers and the British Standards Institute’s (BSI) recommended noise exposure range of 70–80 dBA.

Design

We measured HPD attenuation among a sample of 91 workers at 2 US metal manufacturing facilities, through performance of personal noise dosimetry measurements and HPD fit-testing over multiple work shifts. We compared this testing with participant questionnaires and annual audiometric hearing threshold results.

Results

The average 8-hr Time-weighted Average (TWA) noise exposures for study participants was 79.8 dBA (SD 7.0 dBA), and the average PAR from fit-testing was 20.1 dB (± 6.7 dB). While differences existed between sites, 84% of the 251 PAR measurements resulted in effective protection levels below the recommended 70 dBA (indicating overprotection), while workers were underprotected (i.e., effective exposures >80 dBA) during <1% of monitored shifts. Our results also demonstrated a significant positive relationship between measured noise exposure and PAR among non-custom-molded plug users (p=0.04). Non-custom-molded plug wearers also showed a significant increase in PAR by sequential fit-test interaction (p=0.01), where on average, subsequent fit-testing resulted in increasingly higher HPD attenuation. Workers at site 1 showed higher PARs. PARs were significantly related to race, even when adjusting for site location. While age, hearing threshold level, task, and self-reported tinnitus showed no significant effect on individual PAR in an unadjusted model, site, race, and sand- or water-blasting activities were significant predictors in adjusted models. Within-worker variability in TWAs and PARs across repeated measurements was substantially lower than variability between workers.

Conclusions

Careful selection of HPDs is necessary to minimize instances of over-protection to workers in low and moderate occupational noise environments. The use of fit-testing in hearing conservation programs to evaluate PAR is recommended to avoid overprotection from noise exposure while also minimizing instances of under-attenuation.


Subject:
[+]
Adult
Article
Ear Protective Devices
Equipment Design
Female
Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced
Humans
Male
Manufacturing Industry
Metals
Middle Aged
Noise, Occupational
Occupational Exposure

Source:
Ear Hear. 40(3):680-689
Pubmed ID:
30157082
Pubmed Central ID:
PMC6395583
Document Type:
Journal Article
Funding:
R01 AG026291/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United States ; R01 OH010132/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States ; T42 OH008455/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States
R01 AG026291/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United States ; R01 OH010132/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States ; T42 OH008455/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States Less -
Collection(s):
CDC Public Access
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:bbcd36397ebc2fd645af561a324d4957032ee907f1e7d72ae14eba5e6aae79ac
File Type:

Supporting Files

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