The Noise Exposure Structured Interview (NESI): An Instrument for the Comprehensive Estimation of Lifetime Noise Exposure.
Hannah Guest, Rebecca S Dewey, Christopher J Plack and 4 others
PMID 30295145WHAT IT FOUND
The NESI is a structured interview for estimating lifetime noise exposure.
It asks about noisy activities, life periods, duration, level, hearing protection, and firearm noise. It is mainly for research, not a validated clinical test.
Key findings
01The NESI is a structured interview that records noisy activities, life periods, exposure duration, exposure level, hearing protection, and firearm noise exposure.
02One NESI component, the Speech Communication Table, was evaluated in 168 participants aged 16 to 25 years; estimates agreed with dosimetry within ±3 dB in 56% of cases and within ±6 dB in 91% of cases.
03In preliminary data from 62 respondents, including 19 music-industry workers, the authors report that the NESI can distinguish those in noisy professions from other respondents.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
This is an instrument development paper, not a clinical trial of a treatment. The reported agreement figures come from one component, the Speech Communication Table, and only from occupational settings. Recreational exposures and exposures in the distant past were not evaluated for that component. Preliminary data for the full NESI are from 62 respondents and are not a validation of the instrument. The authors state that interviewer behaviour can influence reporting, so consistent training and scripting are needed. The authors call for further evaluation of the NESI, including reliability and recreational settings.
Declared interests
Funding was from Action on Hearing Loss and the Medical Research Council. The supplied text does not state author conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat the NESI as a validated clinical test for hearing damage. The reported agreement figures are for one component in occupational settings, and the authors state further evaluation is required.