Objective: This study addressed the relationship of hearing loss and coexposure to solvents and noise among farmers and ranchers in central United States.
Methods: The surveillance study included surveys to stratified random samples of operations in 2018 and 2020 (n = 34,146), requesting information on injuries, illnesses, exposures, and preventive measures. Responses (n = 7495) were analyzed using hierarchical multinomial logistic regression, adjusting for personal and work characteristics.
Results: Nearly 60% of respondents exposed to both solvents and noise reported hearing loss. The exposures increased the adjusted odds of moderate/severe hearing loss as follows: solvents alone, (odds ratio [OR], 1.49; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.93-2.38), noise alone (OR, 4.42; 95% CI, 3.39-5.76), and coexposure to both noise and solvents (OR, 6.03; 95% CI, 4.67-7.78).
Conclusions: Solvent exposure, along with noise, should be considered in hearing conservation programs among farmers and ranchers.
Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.