HEARING IMPAIRMENT AMONG PUBLIC TRANSPORT DRIVERS BECAUSE OF THE NOISE POLLUTION ON ROADS

Objective: The research purpose is to find out the effects of pollution caused by noise on hearing of public transport drivers. Methodology: The research method is descriptive, carrying out cross-sectional study at Allied Hospital, Faisalabad Department of ENT (January, 2016 – August, 2016). A subject size of 100 drivers of public transport, who were in driving for eight to ten years in Lahore city, was selected for study. Twenty-five drivers were selected, each having bus, wagon, taxi car and auto-rickshaw. All drivers were examined at ENT wards and Pure-Tone Audiometry and questioned according to a questionnaire Performa. Results: With 41.36 year mean age, a percentage of 51 were driving from last eight to ten years. Among them, having disabling hearing loss (10.00%), normal hearing threshold of 25.00%, and 65.00% were having Noise Induced Hearing Loss. Conclusions: Most of the public transport drivers are facing Noise Induced Hearing Loss due to excessive exposure to noises at roads in the city of Lahore. Keywords: Public Transport (PT), Public Transport Drivers (PTD), Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL), Noise Pollution