The Relationship between Individual Risk Factors and Hearing Loss in Textile Workers

Abstract

Background: Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is a debilitating and irreversible disease and one of the ten most important occupational diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between individual risk factors and NIHL in textile workers. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 128 employees of one of the textile factories of Tehran Province in 2017. At first, data were collected using a demographic questionnaire including age, marital status, level of education, and work shift. Then, using an audiometer, the workers' threshold of hearing was measured in both ears for frequencies of 500, 1000, 2000, 4000, and 8000 Hz, and data were analyzed by the SPSS version 18.Results:The mean age of the workers was 30.59 ( 3.5) years, their mean work experience 5.7 (2.76) years, and the mean environmental noise level at work 87.88 ( 6.13) dB. The findings showed that there was a significant relationship between the level of exposed noise and age, education level, work shift, and marital status. Conclusion: Increased age of population and level of environmental noise are two factors for increased hearing loss, which can be partly prevented by using engineering approaches such as using mufflers and silent rooms.

Keywords

• Noise
• Hearing loss
• Audiometry
• Important risk factors for hearing loss