Evaluation of hearing protection used by police officers in the shooting range

Guida, Heraldo Lorena; Taxini, Carla Linhares; Gonçalves, Cláudia Giglio de Oliveira; Valenti, Vítor Engrácia

doi:10.1016/j.bjorl.2014.08.003

Cited by 14 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 11 publications

(22 reference statements)

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“…According to Guida et al (2014), noise is the main physical causative agent of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL). NIHL also causes stress and impair an effective communication at work, leading to work related accidents (Leão & Dias, 2010).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of noise emitted by a power tiller through geostatistics

Gonçalves

Ferraz

Oliveira

et al. 2019

Rev. bras. eng. agríc. ambient.

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Noise is one of the harmful and stressful physical agents present in the workplace. Research performed with geostatistics to adjust the semivariogram of tractor noise were performed using the Gaussian and spherical model. In this way, the aim was to map the spatial variability of the noise emitted by a power tiller through the sine wave model, besides testing other fitting methods, in order to identify health zones for the workers. The experiment was performed with an agricultural power tiller (10.3 kW) placed in a working regime (1500 rpm), coupled to a brushcutter, and a digital sound level meter to collect noises in points distributed along a regular grid sampling of 2.0 × 2.0 m around the tractor. The spatial dependence of noise was analyzed through semivariogram fitting by different methods and by the wave model to obtain the spatial distribution map interpolated by kriging. It was possible to characterize the structure and the magnitude of the spatial dependence of the noise levels emitted by the tractor, as well as to map the spatial distribution. A maximum noise level of 96.5 dB was observed close to the tractor engine, a value above the limit of 85.0 dB for 8 h of daily exposure (NR-15). Thus, the use of ear protectors is recommended for both the tractor driver and the professionals who support agricultural operation within a radius of 6 m from the emitting source under the conditions studied.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of noise emitted by a power tiller through geostatistics

Gonçalves

Ferraz

Oliveira

et al. 2019

Rev. bras. eng. agríc. ambient.

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“…The discharge of firearms constitutes a major source of routine noise among police officers during the course of their work shift. In a recent study of police officers in Brazil, Guida et al (2014) reported noise levels that exceeded the national occupational health standards.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Firearms are a common source of noise and hazardous noise levels associated with NIHL commonly occurs in the military and the police force during activities that involve firearm and pulse-induced explosions (Sulkowski et al 2017). A number of studies have reported abnormal levels of noise exposures in various occupations, including construction workers, farmers, railway workers, civil aviation workers, military personnel, firefighters, shipyard workers, offshore workers, healthcare workers, musicians, and police officers (Guida et al 2014, Win et al 2015. Previously published studies of hazardous noise exposures have focused on conventional occupations such as airport grounds staff and military personnel, while only a few studies have targeted less obvious professions such as police officers (Lesage et al 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Noise Exposure Assessment for University Police Officers during Rifle and Shotgun Qualifications

Iyiegbuniwe¹,

Ufelle²,

Britt³

2019

AJHMS

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Police and other law enforcement officers are routinely exposed to hazardous noise levels during normal working conditions. Occupational noise exposure is a known risk factor for noise-induced hearing loss and other documented non-auditory health effects of significant public health importance. The purpose of this study was to assess noise exposures among a convenient and representative sample of police officers and instructors at a University in Kentucky during routine rifle and shotgun qualifications at an outdoor firing range. The assessment was conducted among 17 police officers and 2 instructors over a period of 3 days in accordance with the requirements of national noise standards (29 CFR 1910.95) stipulated by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We measured both personal and area sound pressure levels using calibrated noise dosimeters and sound level meters. Average personal noise levels during shotgun and rifle qualifications ranged from 74 to 101 dBA and 90 to 101 dBA, respectively. The results of area noise measurements for shotgun and rifle ranged from 107 to 121 dBA and 106 to 114 dBA, respectively. Without consideration of hearing protection, personal exposures exceeded OSHA's noise standards (i.e., Permissible Exposure Limit of 90 dBA and Action Level of 85 dBA,. The results indicate potential health risks from continuous noise exposures among these police officers and instructors. Recommendations are made for continued adherence to and reinforcement of all elements of OSHA's hearing conservation program.

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“…A modern silencer of the firearm is vastly superior to ear-level protection and the only available form of suppression capable of making certain sporting arms safe for hearing [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]. Forces show an increasing number of cases of hearing damage [9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Many of the early developments of the silencer were mainly empirical in nature [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Force and Sound Pressure Sensors Used for Modeling the Impact of the Firearm with a Suppressor

et al. 2020

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In this paper, a mathematical model for projectiles shooting in any direction based on sensors distributed stereoscopically is put forward. It is based on the characteristics of a shock wave around a supersonic projectile and acoustical localization. Wave equations for an acoustic monopole point source of a directed effect used for physical interpretation of pressure as an acoustic phenomenon. Simulation and measurements of novel versatile mechanical and acoustical damping system (silencer), which has both a muzzle break and silencer properties studied in this paper. The use of the proposed damping system can have great influence on the acoustic pressure field intensity from the shooter. A silencer regarded as an acoustic transducer and multi-holes waveguide with a chamber. Wave equations for an acoustic monopole point source of a directed effect used for the physical interpretation of pressure as an acoustic phenomenon. The numerical simulation results of the silencer with different configurations presented allow trends to be established. A measurement chain was used to compare the simulation results with the experimental ones. The modeling and experimental results showed an increase in silencer chamber volume results in a reduction of recorded pressure within the silencer chamber.

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Evaluation of hearing protection used by police officers in the shooting range

Abstract: The findings showed high levels of sound pressure in the shooting range, which exceeded the maximum recommended noise (120 dBC), even when measured through the insertion microphone. Therefore, alternatives to improve the performance of hearing protection should be considered.

Cited by 14 publications

References 11 publications

Characterization of noise emitted by a power tiller through geostatistics

Characterization of noise emitted by a power tiller through geostatistics

Noise Exposure Assessment for University Police Officers during Rifle and Shotgun Qualifications

Force and Sound Pressure Sensors Used for Modeling the Impact of the Firearm with a Suppressor

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