Abstract

Purpose: Two earlier reports indicated that cardiovascular fitness attenuates susceptibility to noise-induced temporary threshold shift (TTS) in hearing sensitivity; however, other parameters of fitness also may be related to this phenomenon. This study inverstigated the association of three different physical fitness indicators on TTS. Methods: Maximal aerobic power (VO2max), body composition, and recent activity history were determined in 33 normal-hearing females of various fitness levels. Audiometric thresholds were obtained at 2000, 3000, 4000, and 6000 Hz before and immediately after 10 min of exposure to 108-dB SPL narrow-band noise centered at 2000 Hz. Results: All postnoise measurements were significantly less than prenoise measurements with the greatest TTS occurring at 3000 Hz. Similarly, the strongest Pearson-product correlations for VO2max, %fat, and recent activity history with TTS occurred at 3000 Hz (r=-0.68, 0.60, -0.59, respectively; P<0.05). Canonical correlation analysis indicated a moderate correlation between physical fitness and TTS (Rc=0.71; P<0.01). Individually, VO2max, %fat, and recent activity history had correlations of -0.70, 0.62, and -0.63, respectively, to the TTS canonical variable. Conclusions: From these results, we concluded that there is a moderate association of physical fitness and diminished temporary hearing loss experienced after noise exposure. Verf.-Referat