Reporting profile of workers' hearing problems in Brazil, between 2018 and 2021
Occupational Health; Hearing Loss; Noise-Induced; Occupational Exposure; Health Information Systems.
Introduction: Hearing loss in workers may be related to their occupation, especially when exposed to continuous high levels of sound pressure or other risk factors. These hearing problems related to the work process are common injuries among the Notifications of Work Accidents (CAT) registered at the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) and at the Information System of Notification Diseases (SINAN). Objective: To know the main workrelated hearing problems, their causes, occupations, economic sectors, demographic profile of affected workers and place of occurrence, between 2018 and 2021. Method: Cross-sectional, retrospective study in a secondary database. Collection was carried out in INSS and SINAN public databases, from 2018 to 2021. For INSS data, information from notifications regarding occupational accidents related to the affected body part described as “Ear (External, Middle, Internal)” was collected. In SINAN records, the exclusive information of notification of “NoiseInduced Hearing Loss (NIHL)” was selected. Data for categorical variables were presented as absolute numbers and percentages, and data for quantitative variables as means and standard deviation. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: In the years 2018 to 2021, a total of 2631 notifications of work accidents were observed in INSS, while in SINAN there was a total of 1965 notifications. The most recurrent problems were those described as “Alteration of the inner ear and/or auditory nerve / sensorineural hearing loss / labyrinthitis / dizziness”, with a total of 49.98% of notifications to INSS and 79.50% to SINAN. As for age, they ranged between 16 and 90 years, with a mean age of 41.48 years (SD=11.63) for INSS and 51.93 years (SD=11.9) for SINAN. A higher frequency of occupational hearing loss was observed in males (86.7%). The states that most notified were those in the North and Northeast regions for the INSS, while for the SINAN they were those belonging to the Southeast, South and Center-West regions of the country. When analyzing the occupation with the highest prevalence among workers with hearing loss, Machine Operator/Miners was the predominant one, with 35.61% cases in INSS and 33.49% in SINAN. And when analyzing the activity of companies, those that most reported workers with hearing loss were Industry and Oil companies, with 33.22% cases in INSS and 10.89% in SINAN. Still to INSS data, it was observed that the main agent causing accidents was noise (55.44%), with greater development of occupational disease (49.33%) and injuries related mainly to loss or impairment of hearing (62,37%). Conclusion: The results presented show a greater occurrence of hearing loss caused by changes in the inner ear related to the effects of noise, trauma and injuries in Brazilian workers notified, with a greater number of cases in male workers, who operate machinery and who work in the industry.