The Relation between Hearing Loss and Smoking among Workers Exposed to Noise, Using Linear Mixed Models

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Audiology
• Environmental Health

Background:

• Workplace noise is a prevalent occupational hazard with documented physical and psychological impacts.
• Understanding the long-term effects of noise exposure on hearing is critical for industrial worker well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model audiometry results of industrial workers.
• To investigate the impact of noise and other occupational factors on hearing loss.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal study design utilizing worker audiometry records.
• Inclusion criteria: minimum 10 years of industrial employment with documented audiometries.
• Statistical analysis performed using linear mixed models.

Main Results:

• Annual noise exposure correlated with progressive hearing loss: 1.9 dB at 4000 Hz, 0.62 dB in high frequencies, and 0.059 dB in low frequencies.
• Age at employment significantly affected hearing loss at 8000 Hz (P=0.014).
• A significant interaction between smoking and age at employment was linked to low-frequency hearing loss (P<0.001).

Conclusions:

• Industrial workers experience hearing loss despite safety measures, necessitating stricter surveillance for protective gear usage.
• Smoking identified as a potential contributing risk factor for occupational hearing loss.
• Further research into mitigating noise-induced hearing loss in industrial settings is recommended.