In this study, a large audiometric dataset of 29,216 construction workers is used to describe their hearing status. The effect of noise exposure on hearing is observed by comparing hearing threshold levels of noise-exposed workers to thresholds of references. The relationship between hearing and noise intensity and noise exposure time is examined, with particular interest in the hearing loss established during the first 10 years of noise exposure. The measured relationships are compared to ISO-1999 predictions. In addition, the influence of wearing hearing protection and other factors collected in periodic occupational health surveys on NIHL is considered.
Methods This cross-sectional study is based on data collected by Arbouw, the Dutch national institute on occupational health and safety in the construction industry. These data
are derived from medical records of periodic occupational ABT-888 in vitro health examinations (POHE), performed between 1 November 2005 and 20 July 2006 throughout The Netherlands. A POHE consists of an extensive self-administered questionnaire and a physical examination, including standardized audiometric testing. POHEs are provided for all employees in the construction industry, irrespective of occupational noise exposure. The right to participate is laid down in the collective labour agreement, and participation is completely voluntary. Demographic, see more occupational and health-related data are extracted anonymously from the medical records. This includes information regarding job title, use of HPDs (yes/no), self-reported hearing complaints, noise disturbance at work and the number of years employed in both the construction industry and the current occupation. Cigarette Tenoxicam smoking status (non-/ex-/current smoker) alcohol intake (gl/wk) and blood pressure are also recorded.
Hypertension is defined as systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg combined with diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg (De Moraes Marchiori 2006). Independent ethical approval is not needed for this type of retrospective analyses in the Netherlands. Participants The eligible study population contains all 29,216 construction workers who had undergone a POHE in the given period. Hearing threshold levels of the noise-exposed construction workers are compared to different reference groups, in order to separate the effects of occupational noise from those due to ageing and other non-occupational causes of hearing loss. The ISO-1999 standard provides two reference databases: database A, based on a highly screened non-noise-exposed population free from otologic disease, which is used in this study to correct for median age-related hearing loss; and annex B, an alternative database representing a typical otologically unscreened population of an industrialized country, not occupationally exposed to noise. This database derived from representative population-based samples can serve as an appropriate comparison group (Dobie 2006).