Open AccessShooting history and presence of high-frequency hearing impairment in swedish hunters: A cross-sectional internet-based observational study
Author(s) -
Louise Honeth,
Peter Ström,
Alexander Ploner,
Dan BaggerSjöbäck,
Ulf Rosenhall,
Olof Nyrén
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
noise and health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.344
H-Index - 48
eISSN - 1998-4030
pISSN - 1463-1741
DOI - 10.4103/1463-1741.165043
Subject(s) - audiology , cross sectional study , confidence interval , demography , audiometry , medicine , poisson regression , hearing loss , pure tone audiometry , environmental health , population , pathology , sociology
The aim of this cross-sectional study among Swedish hunters was to examine the association between shooting history and presence of high-frequency hearing impairment (HFHI). All hunters registered with an e-mail address in the membership roster of the Swedish Hunters' Association were invited via e-mail to a secure website with a questionnaire and an Internet-based audiometry test. Associations, expressed as prevalence ratio (PR), were multivariately modelled using Poisson regression. The questionnaire was answered by 1771 hunters (age 11-91 years), and 202 of them also completed the audiometry test. Subjective severe hearing loss was reported by 195/1771 (11%), while 23/202 (11%) exhibited HFHI upon testing with Internet-based audiometry. As many as 328/1771 (19%) had never used hearing protection during hunting. In the preceding 5 years, 785/1771 (45%), had fired >6 unprotected gunshots with hunting rifle calibers. The adjusted PR of HFHI when reporting 1-6 such shots, relative to 0, was 1.5 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-2.1; P = 0.02]. We could not verify any excessive HFHI prevalence among 89 hunters reporting unprotected exposure to such gunshot noise >6 times. Nor did the total number of reported rifle shots seem to matter. These findings support the notion of a wide variation in individual susceptibility to impulse noise; that significant sound energy, corresponding to unprotected noise from hunting rifle calibers, seems to be required; that susceptible individuals may sustain irreversible damage to the inner ear from just one or a few shots; and that use of hearing protection should be encouraged from the first shot with such weapons.