Introduction/ background/ objectives:

The authors found some scarce bibliography regarding the possible association between work noise and accidents, when they were searching for articles for other sub-themes associated with noise and occupational health. The purpose of this review is to summarize the most recent and pertinent articles published on the subject.

Methodology:

This Review, was carried out in january of 2021, in the databases “CINALH plus with full text, Medline with full text, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Methodology Register, Nursing and Allied Health Collection: comprehensive, MedicLatina and RCAAP”.

Content:

Several articles mention that noise at work is related to a higher risk of accident, not only because the noise itself and the associated hearing loss (that can impair communication between colleagues, the perception of warnings and the detection/discrimination and location of the sound source), which can also enhance changes in attention, concentration and memory; as well as anxiety and fatigue, factors that also increase the risk of accident. Prolonged exposure to noise can decrease concentration and alertness, increasing the number of errors.

Discussion and Conclusions:

Although there is not much bibliography on the subject, the existing literature seems to be reasonably consensual in relation to an interaction between occupational noise and accidents. Decreasing decibel levels should therefore be a priority, not only due to hearing loss itself and other associated pathologies, but also to mitigate some occupational accidents.

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