Prospective, randomized controlled assessment of the short- and long-term efficacy of a hearing conservation education program in Canadian elementary school children
✍ Scribed by Anastasia Neufeld; Brian D. Westerberg; Shahin Nabi; Graham Bryce; Yves Bureau
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2010
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 295 KB
- Volume
- 121
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0023-852X
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Abstract
Objective:
To assess the efficacy of a hearing conservation program in changing acoustic risk‐taking and hearing conservation behaviors in elementary school children.
Study Design:
Prospective, randomized, mixed design controlled study.
Methods:
Participants were __g__rade‐six students from 16 Vancouver School Board schools. Differences between the intervention and control group responses on a behavioral questionnaire were measured at baseline, and then at 2 weeks and 6 months after administration of a hearing conservation program (Sound Sense™).
Results:
The intervention resulted in significant interactions for improved earplug use at dances (P = .019), rock concerts (P = .001), with percussion musical instruments (P = .002), and electric guitars (P = .028) at 2 weeks postintervention relative to baseline. Improvements in children's earplug use at dances (P = .041), rock concerts (P = .0024), and with power lawn mowers (P = .043) at 6 months postintervention relative to baseline were also observed. Behavior in the intervention group compared to control group improved in earplug use with any “other noises” at 2 weeks (P = .001), and 6 months (P = .022) relative to baseline. There was a tendency in the intervention group to reduce the duration of use of personal music devices at 2 weeks and 6 months after the hearing conservation program, which was nonsignificant.
Conclusion:
The Sound Sense™ hearing conservation program improved earplug use practices in elementary school children in the short and long term. The development, implementation and evaluation of a community‐based health promotion project around hearing loss can serve as a tremendous opportunity for students to develop their knowledge and skills in health advocacy. Laryngoscope, 2011