Earplug as a Barrier on Hearing Disorders Due to Noise Exposure Utami Tri Niswati1,*, Winata Rinaldo2, Sillehu Sahrir3, Marasabessy Rapiah Sarfa4, Nuraini5 1State Islamic University Sumatera Utara, Medan 2PT Socfindo TbkInstitute of Health Science, Maluku Husada Ambon 3Institute of Health Science, Maluku Husada Ambon 4Darussalam University, Ambon 5Health Institute Helvetia, Medan, Indonesia. *Corresponding Author: Dr. Tri Niswati Utami, M. Kes, Public Health Faculty, State Islamic University Sumatera Utara, Medan, e-mail: triniswatiutami@uinsu.ac.id
Online published on 4 April, 2020. Abstract The use of production machinery in the industry is getting higher. Noise due to production machinery disturbs workers, resulting in hearing loss for workers. Deafness due to industrial noise is one of the diseases caused by work. The purpose of the study was to analyze noise intensity and analyze the benefits of earplug on hearing loss. This research is a quantitative study, the design used is a cross-sectional study. The population is workers at PT X who are exposed to noise intensity of 81–89 dB of 77 workers. Total population sampling technique. Data analysis using Spearman correlation (rs). The results of the analysis have no relationship to noise intensity with the right audiometry value (p-value = 0.895), there is no correlation between noise intensity and left audiometric measurements (p-value = 0.581). Workers use personal protective equipment so that noise intensity does not affect hearing function. Earplugs used when working are useful as barriers to protect hearing, able to reduce noise intensity by 30 dB. There is a relationship between right and left audiometry (p-value = 0, 000). Decreasing the hearing power in the right ear will result in a decrease in hearing the power in the left ear, and vice versa. The auditory structure of the right and left ears has anatomically uninterrupted pathways (interconnected channels). Conclusion Earplugs function effectively to protect the ears from hearing loss, therefore it is highly recommended that you always use earplugs during work. Top Keywords Audiometry, Personal protective equipment, Earplug, Hearing loss, Noise intensity. Top |