నైరూప్య

Noise Induced Hearing Loss in City Traffic Policeman

ST Khan, Sudha Karadkhedkar, and Shashin Khadkekar

With rapid industrialization and Urbanization, the hazards of noise pollution are increasing by leaps and bounds. High risk group people exposed to this occupational disease are not aware of detrimental impact of this condition. Our aim to assess the hearing loss in traffic policemen. Hearing assessment of sixty traffic policemen in the age group of 30 to 40 years with service duration of 3.5.± 1.8years were selected for the study. The study was earned out in sound treated room by pure tone audiometer. Noise survey was earned out with the help of Digital Sound level meter. The mean age was 37.88 years with mean years of exposure being 3.5 + 1-8 years. 66 % of cases showed noise induced hearing loss. Duration of service played a definite role as far as noise trauma is concerned. Temporary threshold shift is noted in subjects immediately after traffic duty. Considering the % of cases showing hearing loss which is highly significant Regular periodic hearing assessment by pure tone audiometer is required to detect the effects of noise on hearing mechanism as this is an insidious process and takes long time to become overt. Noise control can be achieved by ear protective devices and regular rotation of working place.