Sports Officials’ Hearing Status: Whistle Use as a Factor Contributing to Hearing Trouble

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to examine the prevalence of hearing loss in a sample of sports officials and estimate the duration of whistle use required to reach a permissible 8-hr 100% noise dose. We conducted an online survey of 321 sports officials regarding their exposure to whistle noise and symptoms of hearing loss and tinnitus, and we assessed the acoustic characteristics of commercially available whistles. Male sports officials registered in Michigan had a greater prevalence of self-reported hearing trouble and tinnitus than observed in the general population of the midwestern United States. Sound levels produced by whistles range between 104 and 116 dBA, which corresponds to maximum unprotected exposure times of 90 to 5 sec, respectively. These findings suggest that whistle use may contribute to hearing loss among sports officials.

Keywords:

• athletic injuries
• hearing loss
• noise-induced occu-pational injuries
• noise-induced tinnitus
• sports

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Funding for whistle purchases and participant compensation was provided by Etymotic Research, Inc., Elk Grove Village, Illinois. The authors would also like to thank Mark Uyl and the Michigan High School Athletic Association for disseminating the survey to eligible sports officials, and Robert Passage and Kalamazoo College for access to an empty gymnasium used while obtaining sound recordings during this project.