Investigation of the effect of noise exposure in the workplace on the general health of steel industry workers

Abstract

Improvements in knowledge as well as technology and industrial workers’ exposure to adverse factors have caused more attention to be paid to the workers’ occupational health. According to the report by W.H.O., noise, as one of the most important physical factors of workplace, causes 4 million dollars health damage every day. Noise can also reduce the workers’ morale as well as motivation and, consequently, have negative effects on their performance. Considering the importance of occupational health, the present study aimed to determine the effect of noise exposure on the steel industry workers’ general health. The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 50 steel industry workers as the exposed group and 50 general practitioners as the reference group. Both study groups completed the demographic information questionnaire as well as GHQ-28. Then, the similarity of the demographic characteristics in both groups was determined using t-test and Chi-square. After scoring the questionnaires, the subjects’ final scores were computed and their general health statuses were determined. Besides, Mann-Whitney U test was used in order to compare the two groups’ mean scores. The demographic characteristics were similar in both study groups. In addition, the two groups’ mean scores were significantly lower than 23, as the cut-off point. The results also revealed a significant difference between the two groups regarding abnormal social performance and depression; in a way that the workers’ mean score was significantly higher than that of the physicians (p<0.001 and p=0.018, respectively). This implies that in comparison to the physicians, the workers had a significantly lower health status. In addition, 36% of the workers suffered from at least one psychological disorder. Overall, the steel industry workers had a lower level of psychological health; in a way that they were significantly different from the reference group regarding the abnormal social performance and depression. Therefore, noise can be considered as a risk factor in the incidence of psychological disorders.