Listen Up! From the NHCA Experts…

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By: Jackie DiFrancesco, Contributor

Which Hearing Protection is Suitable for Those with Hearing Loss?

When choosing hearing protection, one must first ensure it provides adequate attenuation to meet all applicable rules and regulations. It’s easy to assume that more attenuation is always better, but that’s not always the case.

“Overprotection” occurs when a worker wears more attenuation than is needed. This reduces the unwanted noise but also impedes the ability to hear important sounds, like warning alarms, machinery noise or conversation. This can lead to accidents, errors and unhappy workers.

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The risk of overprotection is higher for those with hearing loss who may already have difficulty understanding speech in noisy environments or struggle with sound localization. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) offers some guidance on specific needs of hearing-impaired workers, suggesting these “enhanced” hearing protection options:

• Uniform-attenuation hearing protectors
  • These provide similar attenuation across the frequency spectrum. Conventional hearing protectors attenuate more high-frequency energy, where important speech information resides. Uniform-attenuation hearing protectors allow in more of the speech range.
• Level-dependent hearing protectors
  • These amplify low-level sounds while limiting high-level sounds. They can enhance communication without increasing risk of noise exposure. Other helpful features may include two-way communication, noise cancelling and personal noise monitoring.
• Hearing aid + earmuff
  • A hearing aid alone is not a substitute for hearing protection but can be worn under an earmuff. This combination can potentially improve communication without increasing noise exposure. Safety and benefit should always be verified by an audiologist.

While effective communication and workplace safety in noisy environments is particularly challenging for workers with hearing impairments, the likelihood of injury can be reduced with the proper use of these specialized hearing protectors. IHW

Jackie DiFrancesco is an Audiologist and NHCA Expert. Visit NHCA at: https://www.hearingconservation.org/