Burden of disease: A scoping review of HIV/AIDS and TB in occupational noise-induced hearing loss.
Katijah Khoza-Shangase
PMID 32129660WHAT IT FOUND
Only two South African studies examined TB treatment and occupational noise-induced hearing loss.
Both found worse hearing thresholds in miners with TB history, but evidence linking HIV or TB to hearing conservation is very sparse.
Key findings
01Only two South African studies specifically investigated the influence of TB treatment on occupational noise-induced hearing loss in goldminers.
02In the included goldminer studies, workers with TB treatment history had worse hearing thresholds than workers without TB history.
03Most reviewed mining-sector reports and policies on HIV or TB did not link these conditions to occupational noise-induced hearing loss or hearing conservation programmes.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Only English publications were included, so relevant work in other languages may have been missed. The Google Scholar search was limited to the first 10 hits, so additional relevant grey literature may have been missed. The review found only two studies directly examining TB treatment and occupational noise-induced hearing loss in goldminers, so the evidence base is very small. Most included reports did not link HIV or TB to occupational noise-induced hearing loss, so the review maps gaps rather than testing an intervention. The Minerals Council report notes non-compliance with its data management tool, limiting the ability to track at-risk miners.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this review as evidence that hearing conservation programmes already protect workers on TB or HIV treatment. It found only two studies directly examining TB treatment and occupational noise-induced hearing loss, and most included reports did not link these diseases to hearing conservation.