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Prevalence of Hearing Loss Among Noise-Exposed US Workers Within the Utilities Sector, 2010-2019
Elizabeth A Masterson1, Christa L Themann
1From the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Objective:
This study's objective was to estimate hearing loss prevalence for noise-exposed US Utilities workers.
Methods:
In this cross-sectional study of a retrospective cohort, audiograms were examined for 1.3 million workers (13,595 within utilities) from 2010-2019. Hearing loss prevalence and adjusted risk as compared with a reference industry were estimated.
Results:
The hearing loss prevalence for noise-exposed Utilities workers (25%) was higher than for noise-exposed workers in all industries combined (20%). Some subsectors surpassed the prevalence for all industries combined and/or had adjusted risks significantly higher than the reference industry. The highest prevalence subsectors were Hydroelectric Power Generation (37%) and steam and Air-Conditioning Supply (29%).
Conclusions:
While often overlooked, noise-exposed workers in this sector have among the highest prevalences of hearing loss and significantly higher risks. Increased attention and better hearing conservation strategies are needed.
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