MMWR News Synopsis for April 21, 2016

Hearing Impairment among Noise-Exposed Workers — United States, 2003–2012

CDC Media Relations
404-639-3286

Hearing loss prevention, and early detection and intervention to avoid additional hearing loss, are critical to preserve worker quality of life. Occupational hearing loss, primarily caused by high noise exposure, is the most common work-related illness in the United States. It is a permanent but entirely preventable condition. CDC compared the prevalence of hearing impairment and the associated impact on quality of life within nine industry sectors. The mining sector had the highest prevalence of workers with any hearing impairment, and with moderate or worse impairment, followed by the construction and manufacturing sectors. Concurrent with prevention efforts, early detection of hearing loss by consistent annual audiometric testing, and intervention to preclude further loss (e.g., refitting hearing protection, training), are critical. Workers who have lost hearing can also benefit from clinical rehabilitation, which includes fitting hearing aids, learning lip-reading, and adopting other compensation strategies to optimize hearing.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES