262368 Hearing health and mass transit ridership

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Robyn R.M. Gershon, DrPH , Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, UCSF Philip R . Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies and UCSF School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA
Martin Sherman, PhD , Department of Psychology, Loyola University, Baltimore, MD
Lori Magda, MA , School of Psychology, Fairleigh Dickinson University, Secaucus
Halley Riley, BA , Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY
Tara P. McAlexander, MPH (May 2012) , Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY
Richard Neitzel, PhD , Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Objective: Information on prevalence and risk factors associated with self-reported hearing health among mass transit riders is extremely limited, even though evidence suggests mass transit may be a source of excessive exposure to noise.

Methods: Data on mass transit ridership and hearing health were collected from 756 study participants using a self-administered questionnaire. Hearing health was measured using two symptom items (tinnitus and temporary audiometric threshold shift), two subjective measures (self-rated hearing and hearing ability), and two medical-related questions (hearing testing and physician-diagnosed hearing loss).

Results: In logistic regression analyses that controlled for possible confounders, including demographic variables, occupational noise exposure, non-occupational noise exposure (including MP3 player use) and use of hearing protection, frequent and lengthy mass transit (all forms) ridership (1100 minutes or more per week vs. 350 minutes or less per week) was the strongest correlate of temporary threshold shift symptoms.

Conclusions: Noise abatement strategies, such as engineering controls, and the promotion of hearing protection use should be encouraged to reduce the risk of adverse impacts on the hearing health of mass transit users.

Learning Areas:
Environmental health sciences
Epidemiology
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe the sources of excessive noise exposure in an urban environment. 2. List two possible confounders in the study of noise exposure and hearing loss. 3. Discuss two methods of hearing protection

Keywords: Environmental Exposures, Urban Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a doctor of Public Health trained at Johns Hopkins. I am currently a Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the UCSF Sch of Medicine. I am a Professor Emerita at Columbia Universty, sch of Public Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 5008.0: *Poster Session*: Transportation and population health