An evaluation of hearing damage risk to attenders at discotheques : project report / Department of the Environment.

  • Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions
Date:
1979
Catalogue details

Licence: Open Government Licence

Credit: An evaluation of hearing damage risk to attenders at discotheques : project report / Department of the Environment. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    2el Whittle and Robinson reviewed some 38 papers directly relating to the subject together with some 1l other associated papers or reports dating from 1967 to 1973 and divided into two main groups. (1) Studies on the sound levels experienced in discotheques from which, using established Damage Risk Criteria, predictions were made of hearing levels of attenders. (2) Studies on the hearing levels of young people who were either recognised attenders or musicians or other groups in which the measured loss was associated with discotheques or pop concert attendance. The remaining group consisted of laboratory studies of Temporary Threshold Shift (TTS) on volunteer population or animal studies of TTS or Permanent Threshold Shift (PTS) including histological examination. The purpose of their report was defined as 'to review the various studies....... to collate the available information....... and to produce a best estimate of the probability and extent of damage to hearing using the latest (1973) methods of assessment (ISO 1971: Robinson and Shipton 1973)! Sound Levels, Attendance Patterns and Predicted Hearing Loss The parameters of the noise exposure contributing to noise induced hearing loss were examined and the results reported in group (1) above, summarised. Eleven sets of data involving live groups and two sets of data involving recorded music gave the results shown in Table 2.1 Frequency Hz (SPL) 63 «125+ '250., 500i; 1K PPK od Kod? Ski eiiiyp* dBA Live, -,Mean 2) n9#n L035, 105 «1Ols5 966 +95 2 2891 a BOLegdogrero4 Coped god nee doin roe gtemigl BO°R 723. PS ato MBO ee Rec. — Mean 74 84 88 89 84 fie 64 56 94 91 agi he © ar: See ee eae es a ae Table 2.1 Sound Levels from Live and Recorded Music from 13 investigations summaries by Whittle and Robinson (1973) The general variability of the sound was considered and it was observed that the sound level varied some 5dB(A), RMS,'Slow', 'when the music plays! (Fearn 1972) although it was thought likely that variations between items of music would exceed that value. Whittle and Robinson also expressed the view that intense impulses were hardly likely to occur due to the small margin between the mean level and the peak handling capacity of the equipment. This view is supported by Briiel (1976) who reported that 'Beat Music' and 'Modern'Music! from a grammpphone showed the least differences, 7 and 3dBs respectively,
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