Ill. Admin. Code tit. 56, § 350.320 - Recording Criteria for Cases Involving Occupational Hearing Loss
a) Basic
Requirement
If an employee's hearing test (audiogram) reveals that the employee has experienced a work-related Standard Threshold Shift (STS) in hearing in one or both ears, and the employee's total hearing level is 25 dB or more above audiometric zero (averaged at 2000, 3000 and 4000 Hz) in the same ear or ears as the STS, record the case on the OSHA 300 Log.
b) Implementation
1) An STS is defined in the occupational
noise exposure standard (
29 CFR
1910.95(g)(10)(i) ) as a
change in hearing threshold, relative to the baseline audiogram for that
employee, of an average of 10 dB or more at 2000, 3000 and 4000 Hz in one or
both ears.
2) Evaluating the
Current Audiogram to Determine Whether an Employee has an STS and a 25-dB
Hearing Level
A) STS. If the employee has
never previously experienced a recordable hearing loss, compare the employee's
current audiogram with that employee's baseline audiogram. If the employee has
previously experienced a recordable hearing loss, compare the employee's
current audiogram with the employee's revised baseline audiogram (the audiogram
reflecting the employee's previous recordable hearing loss case).
B) 25-dB Loss. Audiometric test results
reflect the employee's overall hearing ability in comparison to audiometric
zero. Therefore, using the employee's current audiogram, you must use the
average hearing level at 2000, 3000 and 4000 Hz to determine whether the
employee's total hearing level is 25 dB or more.
3) When determining whether an STS has
occurred, adjust the employee's current audiogram results by using Table F-1 or
F-2, as appropriate, in Appendix F of
29 CFR
1910.95. Do not use an age adjustment when
determining whether the employee's total hearing level is 25 dB or more above
audiometric zero.
4) If the
employee's hearing is retested within 30 days of the first test, and the retest
does not confirm the recordable STS, the employer is not required to record the
hearing loss case on the OSHA 300 Log. If the retest confirms the recordable
STS, record the hearing loss illness within 7 calendar days after the retest.
If subsequent audiometric testing performed under the testing requirements of
the
29 CFR
1910.95 noise standard indicates that an STS
is not persistent, you may erase or line-out the recorded entry.
5) In determining whether a hearing loss case
is work-related, use Section
350.270
to determine if the hearing loss is work-related. If an event or exposure in
the work environment either caused or contributed to the hearing loss, or
significantly aggravated a pre-existing hearing loss, consider the case to be
work-related.
6) If a physician or
other licensed health care professional determines that the hearing loss is not
work-related or has not been significantly aggravated by occupational noise
exposure, the employer is not required to consider the case work-related or to
record the case on the OSHA 300 Log.
7) When entering a recordable hearing loss
case on the OSHA 300 Log, check the 300 Log column for hearing loss.
Notes
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