Premium
Occupational hearing loss in Washington state, 1984–1991: I. statewide and industry‐specific incidence
Author(s) -
Daniell William E.,
FultonKehoe Deborah,
SmithWeller Terri,
Franklin Gary M.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0274(199806)33:6<519::aid-ajim1>3.0.co;2-l
Subject(s) - medicine , incidence (geometry) , workers' compensation , hearing loss , occupational medicine , occupational safety and health , psychological intervention , compensation (psychology) , demography , environmental health , occupational exposure , gerontology , audiology , psychology , physics , pathology , sociology , psychoanalysis , optics , psychiatry
This study examined non‐federal workers' compensation claims accepted for hearing‐related conditions in Washington state during 1984–1991. Seventy percent of 6,539 filed claims were accepted (n = 4,547); most accepted claims resulted in disability compensation (n = 3,660; 80%). A transient 50‐fold increase in claims from one worksite accounted for one‐third of all hearing‐related claims in the state for 2 years. The number and incidence of accepted claims from all other worksites increased significantly across the study period. The incidence was 0.3 per 10 3 workers per year, overall, but was at least five‐fold higher in industries that accounted for half of accepted claims, and reached 38‐ to 71‐fold higher in some industries. This study indicates: 1) workers' compensation claims under‐estimate the true frequency of occupational illness, representing only the “tip of the iceberg;” 2) hearing loss is a growing problem in occupational health; and 3) workers' compensation data are potentially useful to identify specific high‐incidence industries for possible interventions. Am. J. Ind. Med. 33:519–528, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.