National Estimate of Workers Exposed to Hazardous Workplace Noise --- United States, 1999—2004

The most common cause of occupational hearing loss (OHL) is excessive noise exposure, which can damage the inner ear, principally the sensory hair cells in the cochlea. Fortunately, OHL is entirely preventable. While there is much that is understood about how excessive noise causes hearing loss, recent information on the prevalence of noise exposure in the US workplace is not available. To estimate the prevalence of workplace noise exposure, NIOSH analyzed 1999 - 2004 data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). A total of 9,275 currently employed workers aged ≥ 16 years completed the sample questionnaire and were included in the analysis. Hazardous workplace noise exposure is defined as on-the-job noise that is so loud that the respondent has to speak in a raised voice to be heard. Industry was determined based on the answer to a question about the respondent's current place of work (business). The analysis showed that among U.S. workers, 17% (22 million persons) reported exposure to hazardous workplace noise and 20% (approximately 4.5 million persons) of these workers were employed in construction. The prevalence of workplace noise exposure was highest for mining (76%) followed by lumbar and wood product manufacturing (55%), rubber, plastics, and leather products manufacturing (48%), utilities (46%), and repair and maintenance (45%). These data demonstrate the need to target industries with a high prevalence of workplace noise exposure with hearing loss prevention programs and other protective interventions.