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A Comparison Of Ambient And Hearing Aid Output Noise Levels In Industrial And Non-Industrial Settings, Jody Lynn O'Connor

Dissertations and Theses

Federal regulations specify that an employee working for eight hours cannot legally be exposed to noise which has a time-weighted average greater than 90 decibels on the A scale. The industrial workforce is comprised of not only people with normal hearing acuity, but of individuals who suffer from hearing loss. While current noise regulation standards are deemed appropriate for those with normal hearing, it is difficult to apply these standards to persons wearing hearing aids on the job. The ambient, or unamplified, noise levels that fall below the maximum permitted by OSHA standards may very well be amplified to levels …