For a second year, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), in cooperation with the National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA), is excited to announce a dedicated supplemental issue of the International Journal of Audiology. The issue highlights research presented at NHCA’s 36th Annual Conference in February 2011. The studies highlighted include:

• Lessons learned from the use of new methodologies in studying hearing sensitivity after exposure to drug therapies that may cause hearing damage

• Potential barriers to implementing engineering noise controls in manufacturing

• NIOSH-supported research on major sources of noise in daily working life

• NIOSH-supported research on how different hearing protection devices perform across a wide range of impulse sounds

• The effectiveness of hearing protection-enhancement devices for gunshots

• The history and impact of the NIOSH and NHCA Safe-in-Sound Excellence in Hearing Loss Prevention Award™

NIOSH Director Dr. John Howard noted that noise-induced hearing loss is a critical issue for all workers, stating, “The ability to hear can greatly impact a workers ability to do their job as well as their quality of life. Understanding the causes and how to effectively prevent noise-induced hearing loss is an important priority for NIOSH as we continue to look at total worker health.”

Additional support from this endeavor was provided by a grant by the Oticon Foundation, and financially underwriting by ASI Health Services; the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC), Etymotic Research Inc., HCI Hearing Conservation, Inc., HTI Inc. Mobile Audiometric Services, MED Compass, Mimosa Acoustics, and MobileEar Inc. Visit informahealthcare.com/toc/ija/51/S1  to view the special supplemental issue.

The 2012 Safe-in-Sound Excellence in Hearing Loss Prevention Awards™ will be presented at the 37th NHCA Annual Conference in Mesa, AZ on Friday, February 24th, 2012. For information on the conference please go to www.hearingconservation.org . Nominations for the next round of awards will be accepted until September 1st, 2012. For further information please visit www.safeinsound.us .

NIOSH recommends removing hazardous noise from the workplace whenever possible and implementing an effective hearing loss prevention program in those situations where dangerous noise exposures have not yet been controlled or eliminated. For more information about noise and hearing loss prevention research at NIOSH please visit www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/noise/abouthlp/abouthlp.html.