Volume: 1 Issue: 1
Year: 2013, Page: 16-21,
Background: In developing countries people suffer more from noise induced hearing loss. Occupational noise produces hearing loss which is 100 % preventable by using safety measures. Considering the paucity of studies, a cross sectional comparative study was conducted among 256 textile industrial workers.
Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire was used to assess the baseline characteristics of the workers. Pure tone audiometry was performed on all the workers to assess the degree of hearing loss.
Results: A significant association was observed between the duration of exposure and hearing loss in left ear (X2 =22.39, P<0.01) and in right ear (X2=30.31, P<0.01) among workers exposed to low level of noise (<80dB) whereas significant association between the duration of exposure with hearing loss was observed only in left ear (X2=18.12, P<0.01) among workers exposed to high level of noise. Conclusion: Association between the hearing loss and duration of exposure was significant in both the ears among workers exposed to low level of noise(<80dB) and only in the left ear among workers exposed to high level of noise.
Keywords: Developing countries, textile industry,Pure tone Audiometry, Noise induced hearing Loss.
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Shah NN, Baig NM, Vaidya SR. A study of exposure to noise and hearing loss among textile workers. Perspectives in medical research 2013; 1: 16-21