Duration of Workplace Noise Exposure and Blood Pressure Among Rural Adult Weavers: A Cross-Sectional Study

This study aimed to determine the effect of the duration of noise exposure on blood pressure among rural adult power loom weavers.

A cross-sectional study was done among 289 adult workers of selected weaving factories of Araihazar, Narayanganj, Bangladesh, from January 2023 to December 2023. A semi-structured questionnaire, containing socio-demographic data, behavioral factors, family history, and disease history, was developed as a data collection tool, and data were collected by face-to-face interview. Blood pressure, height, weight, and noise intensity were measured accordingly.

Among participants, 94.1% were male, 84.4% were married, and more than one-third were without formal education; their mean age was 34.41 ± 10.17. The respondents' mean duration of workplace exposure was 15.97 years, and the measured intensity of noise inside the factories was 105.45 dB (96-111 dB). The mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) was 124.52 mmHg and the mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was 82.93 mmHg. The prevalence of hypertension was 31.5% among the weavers, and 53.3% were prehypertensive. Both SBP (R 0.320, p value < 0.01) and DBP (R 0.366, p value < 0.01) had a significant positive correlation with the duration of exposure. Linear regression also significantly predicted SBP (p value < 0.01) and DBP (p value < 0.01) for the duration of noise exposure. In multinomial regression, for each year of exposure, the odds of hypertension increase by 10% (AOR 1.1, p value < 0.05) after adjusting for BMI, age, and smoking.

Herein, we were able to demonstrate that duration noise exposure is independently associated with elevated blood pressure and increases the odds of hypertension.