Study finds high prevalence of hearing loss among industrial workers
The research, which included 344 industrial workers in Kampala's metropolitan region, discovered that 11% of them had hearing problems, as determined by a smartphone app called Wulira and the Gold standard test, also known as the pure-tone audiometer.
According to new data from a research assessing the prevalence of occupational hearing loss among industrial employees, many of them are impacted unwittingly. The research, which included 344 industrial workers in Kampala’s metropolitan region, discovered that 11% of them had hearing problems, as determined by a smartphone app called Wulira and the Gold standard test, also known as the pure-tone audiometer.
Dr. Charles Batte, a co-investigator on the study and a researcher at Makerere University’s College of Health Sciences, says the findings indicate the need for frequent screening of industrial workers and for employers to put in place programs that prevent hearing impairment to their employees.
The researchers compared the app’s ability to identify hearing loss to the gold standard, which is costly to use and largely unavailable. Non-technical individuals may use the software, according to Batte.
People who had worked in these noisy businesses for more than two years had higher hearing problems than those who had only been there for six months, according to the research. Individuals who had just joined the selected firms’ hearing abilities were not assessed by the researchers.
Dr. Amina Seguya, an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) expert, stated that many of the patients who wind up in the hospital with significant hearing problems have a history of working in highly noisy environments, and that when asked if they were ever screened, many reply they didn’t realize it was necessary. Despite the fact that it is necessary, Seguya claims that only around 10% of manufacturers have protocols in place for periodically screening their staff, and that even among those that do, just a handful do it on a regular basis. However, Seguya advises industrial employees to focus on prevention, which may be accomplished by working in shifts and undergoing frequent screenings to discover problems before they become impossible to reverse.
People who work in high-noise environments should test at least once a year, according to her. Dr. Mariana Agaba, who heads the Ministry of Gender’s Occupational Health and Safety Department, claims that they have developed a regulatory framework for industrial workers that requires them to have a policy statement that clearly states that the nature of their work does not endanger both workers and the environment.
While it is recommended that such employees be given noise-controlling ear devices, Agaba argues that while safeguarding workers, you should look at methods to limit noise at the source rather than using personal protection equipment.
Batte adds that in the future, a research team supported by the government through the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (MAK RIF) would look at the amount of hearing loss in diverse loud environments including welders, grain mills, and broadcast media.
