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Environmental Health Studies


Noise

Background | FAQ | Links | Publications


Background

According to the World Health Organization's Guidelines for Community Noise, noise is an increasing public health problem. Noise can have the following adverse health effects: hearing loss; sleep disturbances; cardiovascular and psychophysiologic problems; performance reduction; annoyance responses; and adverse social behavior.

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Links

Federal

  • CDC's National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities' Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Program

    EHDI programs are located in states and are designed to identify infants with hearing loss by universal screening. The Web site includes EHDI program information; screening guidelines; research findings and state data; and information for professionals and parents.
     
  • CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)

    Several NCHS data systems contain data about hearing loss, including the following:

     
  • CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
     
  • Federal Interagency Committee on Aviation Noise (FICAN) *

    FICAN provides a forum for discussing future research needs regarding better understanding, predicting, and controlling the effects of aviation noise and encouraging new technical development efforts in these areas. Its Web site offers information about FICAN activities, research, publications, news, and links to related noise sites.
     
  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders *

    NIDCD conducts and supports biomedical and behavioral research and research training; conducts and supports research and research training related to disease prevention and health promotion; addresses special biomedical and behavioral problems associated with people who have communication impairments or disorders; and supports efforts to create devices that substitute for lost and impaired sensory and communication function. The site provides documents, databases, and other resources regarding hearing.
     
  • Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Noise and Hearing Conservation Web Site *

    The site provides information about evaluation, control, compliance, and training related to noise and hearing loss in the workplace, engineering controls, and hearing conservation programs.

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Nonfederal Organizations

  • American Academy of Audiology *

    The American Academy of Audiology promotes quality hearing and balance care by advancing the profession of audiology through leadership, advocacy, education, public awareness and support of research.
     
  • American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) *

    ASHA provides resources on communication disorders, including hearing, for the public, professionals in the communication field, and students of audiology and speech-language pathology.
     
  • Healthy Hearing *

    This site provides hearing news, information, resources, and a platform for exchanging information.
     
  • League for the Hard of Hearing's Noise Center *

    The Noise Center’s mission is to promote hearing conservation and noise awareness through education, advocacy and outreach. This Web site provides information about legislation, noisy toys, airport noise, hearing hazards, and other topics related to hearing and noise.
     
  • National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA)*

    NHCA’s mission is to prevent hearing loss due to noise and other environmental factors in all sectors of society. The site includes information about membership and the organization, position statements, meetings, and hearing-related resources.
     
  • Noise Pollution Clearinghouse *

    The clearinghouse is a national nonprofit organization offering extensive online noise-related resources. Its mission is to create more civil cities and more natural rural and wilderness areas by reducing noise pollution at the source.
     
  • Sight and Hearing Association *

    The association is dedicated to preventing the needless loss of vision and hearing through effective screening, education, and research. Its Web site offers information about eye and ear issues, products, and services.
     
  • Wise Ears! Coalition

    The Coalition, of which CDC is a member, is conducting a national campaign to prevent noise-induced hearing loss. Its Web site includes information for children, teachers, parents, the public, media, and coalition members, and partners.
     
  • World Health Organization's Guidelines for Community Noise *

    The guidelines provide information about noise sources and their measurement, the adverse health effects of noise, guideline values, and noise management.

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Publications

CDC on Community Noise/Hearing Status

Estimated prevalence of noise-induced hearing threshold shifts among children 6-19 years of age: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988-94 -- United States. Niskar AS, Kieszak SM, Holmes A, Esteban E, Rubin C, Brody DJ. Pediatrics 2001;108:40-3.

This analysis estimates the first nationally representative prevalence of noise-induced hearing threshold shifts among U.S. children. The results of this analysis suggest that children are being exposed to excessive amounts of hazardous levels of noise, and children's hearing is vulnerable to these exposures.

Also see the Letter to the Editor and reply:

Reply to letter to the editor: noise-induced hearing loss. Niskar AS, Kieszak SM, Holmes A, Esteban E, Rubin C, Brody DJ. Pediatrics 2002;109:987-8.

Prevalence of hearing loss among children 6-19 years of age: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Niskar AS, Kieszak SM, Holmes A, Esteban E, Rubin C, Brody DJ. JAMA 1998;279(14):1071-5.

This analysis describes the prevalence of hearing loss among U.S. children by sociodemographic characteristics, reported hearing loss, and audiometric screening factors. The results of this analysis indicate that 14.9% of U.S. children have low-frequency or high-frequency hearing loss of at least 16-dB hearing level in one or both ears.

Also see the Letter to the Editor and reply:

Letters - August 19, 1998, In Reply: Hearing loss among children. Niskar AS, Kieszak SM, Holmes A, Esteban E, Rubin C, Brody DJ. JAMA 1998;280:602.

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*This link leads outside the CDC site to another federal agency or CDC partner site.  Links to non-federal organizations are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the federal government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at these links.  The link will open the page in a new browser window.

 

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This page last reviewed October 12, 2004

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