Auditory function among young occupational divers: a 3-year follow-up study.
Auditory function was measured in a 3-year follow-up study of 54 young occupational divers divided into high-exposure (n = 23) and low-exposure (n = 31) groups. The divers performed open-sea dives with a median number of 132 dives (range 44-766) during follow-up. At the start of follow-up, hearing in the high-exposure group was reduced compared with that in the low-exposure group. During the follow-up period, the total group experienced a significantly reduced hearing ability at 4 kHz in the left ear. No difference in change between the last and the first measurement for both ears combined was found when the two groups were compared. A regression analysis of measurements at the end of follow-up shows an association between the loss of hearing in the left ear at 6 and 8 kHz and the total number of years of diving. This indicates that diving may contribute to hearing impairment.
Skogstad
M
M
National Institute of Occupational Health, Oslo, Norway. Marit.Skogstad@stami.no
Haldorsen
T
T
Arnesen
A R
AR
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology; D001334:Automobile Driving; D001844:Bone Conduction / Q000502:physiology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006317:Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012016:Reference Values; D012720:Severity of Illness Index