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Abstract
Objective
The purpose of this study is to estimate the prevalence of hearing loss among noise-exposed U.S. workers within the Services sector.
Methods
Audiograms for 1.9 million workers (158,436 within Services) from 2006 to 2015 were examined. Prevalence and adjusted risk for hearing loss as compared with a reference industry were estimated for the Services sector/sub-sectors, and all industries combined.
Results
The prevalence of hearing loss within Services was 17 compared to 16% for all industries combined. However, many sub-sectors greatly exceeded the overall prevalence (10–33% higher) and/or had adjusted risks significantly higher than the reference industry. Workers in Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development had the highest prevalence (50%), and workers in Solid Waste Combustors and Incinerators had more than double the risk, the highest of any sub-sector. Some sub-sectors traditionally viewed as ‘low-risk’ also had high prevalences and risks.
Conclusions
Large numbers of workers within Services have an elevated risk of hearing loss and need immediate hearing conservation efforts. Additional research and surveillance are needed for sub-sectors for which there is low awareness of hearing hazards or a lack of hearing data.
Disclaimer
The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Jia Li for her expert advice related to the statistical analysis. The authors also thank the data providers, without whom this research would not be possible.
Declaration of interest
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).