The management of occupational noise–induced hearing loss in the mining sector in Africa: A systematic review – 1994 to 2016

Abstract

Literature into exposure to occupational noise in developing countries suggests that the prevalence of occupational noise–induced hearing loss is still high. There is also evidence that the mining industry is aware of this epidemic; however, the efforts to curb occupational noise–induced hearing loss are currently unsuccessful. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore and document current evidence reflecting trends in the management of occupational noise–induced hearing loss in the mining industry in Africa from 1994 to 2016. A systematic literature review was conducted in line with the Cochrane collaboration guidelines and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis. Electronic bibliographic databases such as ScienceDirect, PubMed and Scopus MEDLINE were searched. A total of 1212 titles and abstracts were identified; of which only nine papers formed part of this study. The results indicated that there is a dearth of research on the management of occupational noise–induced hearing loss in Africa. The limited research on the management of occupational noise–induced hearing loss focuses on some aspects of the hearing conservation programme pillars and not on all the pillars as suggested by some scholars in the field. Furthermore, these studies had small sample sizes thereby, minimizing their generalization. There is therefore a need for more studies on the management of occupational noise–induced hearing loss in the mining sector, as there is evidence to suggest that occupational noise–induced hearing loss in African countries is still on the rise.