ABSTRACT
For many centuries, even as far back as Biblical days, it has been known that long
exposure to very loud noise can cause hearing loss. However, it was not until the Industrial
Revolution in the 19th century, with its overwhelmingly noisy machines, that noise-
induced hearing loss became of concern to society. As a result of their occupations thou-
sands of workers were exposed for many months and years to very high noise levels.
Hearing loss among employees performing certain jobs became so common that terminol-
ogy connected the job to the symptoms. For instance, boiler maker’s deafness and gun
shooting deafness were common terms, as were many others. Although many workers
recognized that hearing loss was being caused by their jobs, little effort was made to
prevent its occurrence. In fact, during the Industrial Revolution little effort was made to
prevent many diseases and injuries associated with occupational causes.
