AS/NZS 1269.4:2005

AS/NZS 1269.4:2005 OCCUPATIONAL NOISE MANAGEMENT - AUDITORY ASSESSMENT

PREFACE

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

1 SCOPE

2 APPLICATION

3 REFERENCED DOCUMENTS

4 DEFINITIONS

4.1 Air conduction

4.2 Audiogram of a subject

4.3 Audiometric recording

4.4 Automatic recording audiometer

4.5 Computer-controlled audiometer

4.6 Hearing level

4.7 Hearing threshold level

4.8 Manual audiometer

4.9 Pure tone audiometer

4.10 Significant threshold shift

5 AUDIOMETERS

5.1 General requirements

5.2 Specific requirements

5.2.1 Frequencies and sound pressure levels of test tones

5.2.2 Pulsing of test tones

5.2.3 Attenuation rate of automatic recording audiometers

5.3 Maintenance and calibration

5.3.1 General

5.3.2 Check procedures

5.3.3 Basic calibration

6 ACOUSTICAL ENVIRONMENT FOR AUDIOMETRY

6.1 General

6.2 Measurement of background noise level

6.3 Maximum acceptable background noise levels

7 AUDIOMETRY

7.1 General

7.2 Tester

7.3 Test subjects

7.4 Reference audiometry

7.5 Monitoring audiometry

7.6 Recording of results

7.6.1 General

7.6.2 Reference audiometry

7.6.3 Monitoring audiometry

8 AUDIOMETRIC TEST PROCEDURES

8.1 General

8.2 Preparation for testing

8.3 Instruction of subject

8.4 Manual audiometry

8.5 Automatic recording audiometry

8.5.1 General

8.5.2 Familiarization

8.5.3 Hearing threshold level measurements

8.5.4 Determination of hearing threshold levels in automatic recording audiometry

8.6 Limitation of air-conduction threshold audiometry

8.7 Computer-controlled audiometry

9 ASSESSMENT OF AUDIOGRAMS

9.1 General

9.2 Reference audiometry

9.3 Monitoring audiograms

9.4 Action to be taken when threshold shift detected or new tinnitus reported

9.5 Updating of reference audiograms

9.6 Audiometric data base analysis

10 EVOKED OTOACOUSTIC EMISSIONS

11 CHECKLISTS

APPENDIX A - IMPROVED AUDIOMETRIC TEST PROCEDURE

A1 GENERAL

A2 FURTHER READING

APPENDIX B - MEASUREMENT OF BACKGROUND NOISE LEVELS IN AUDIOMETRIC TEST ENVIRONMENTS

B1 GENERAL

B2 TESTER

B3 FREQUENCY OF EVALUATIONS

B4 INSTRUMENTATION

B5 MEASUREMENT PROCEDURE

B5.1 General

B5.2 Measurement of background noise level

B6 ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE

B6.1 Acceptability of audiometric test environments for various earphone combinations

B7 REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

APPENDIX C - MEASUREMENT OF NOISE REDUCTION OF AUDIOMETRIC BOOTHS

C1 GENERAL

C2 TEST SIGNAL

C3 TESTER AND INSTRUMENTATION

C4 MEASUREMENT PROCEDURE

C4.1 General

C4.2 Measurement external to the booth

C4.3 Measurement inside the booth

C4.4 Determination of noise reduction

C5 ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE

C6 REPORTING REQUIREMENT

APPENDIX D - MAXIMUM ACCEPTABLE BACKGROUND NOISE LEVELS FOR WORKPLACE AUDIOMETRY PROGRAMS

D1 GENERAL

D2 FURTHER READING

APPENDIX E - COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS FOR AUDIOMETRISTS

APPENDIX F - AUDIOMETRIC SYMBOLS FOR AUDIOGRAMS OBTAINED IN OCCUPATIONAL NOISE MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS

APPENDIX G - ESTIMATED PREVALENCE OF NOISE-INDUCED HEARING IMPAIRMENT AND HEARING DISABILITY IN NOISE-EXPOSED POPULATIONS

G1 HEARING IMPAIRMENT

G2 HEARING DISABILITY

G3 FURTHER READING

APPENDIX H - OTOACOUSTIC EMISSIONS

H1 USING EARLY WARNING PROPERTIES OF CLICK-EVOKED OTOACOUSTIC EMISSIONS FOR APPLICATION TO HEARING LOSS PREVENTION

H1.1 Summary

H1.2 Introduction

H1.3 Evoked otoacoustic emission methodology

H1.4 Method of collecting data

H1.5 Nature of the National Acoustic Laboratories™ (NAL) database

H1.6 Further Reading

H1.7 Early warning analysis of record data and comparison with Australian database