Abstract
Noise exposure is an important factor in the management of intensive care patients. There are many different causes of noise in the ICU such as equipment, monitors, staff, family plus other additional sources. Patients in the ICU are exposed to these noise sources for 24 hours a day with no respite. The noise levels can vary significantly during the day as well as significantly between patient bed-spaces. There are detrimental effects from excessive noise exposure; some of this is related to the risk of damage to a person's hearing.
Highlights
Noise exposure is an important factor in the management of intensive care patients [1]
There was no significant difference in the noise levels between these three time periods
While there was no difference in noise levels in the periods surrounding a sedation bolus or escalation in infusion dosing, there was a difference noted between the average decibels and minimum decibels
Summary
Noise exposure is an important factor in the management of intensive care patients [1]. Patients in the ICU are exposed to these noise sources for 24 hours a day with no respite. The noise levels can vary significantly during the day as well as significantly between patient bed-spaces. There are detrimental effects from excessive noise exposure; some of this is related to the risk of damage to a person’s hearing [2]. We have previously shown that in our ICU the majority of our patients experience an average noise level per minute > 80 dB. With peak noise exposure > 100 dB occurring for more than 10% of the day [6]. This is higher than the recommendation of the AAP with respect to safe noise level exposure [7]
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