Noise and hypertension: study of their association among female teachers

ABSTRACT Purpose: investigate the association of noise exposure with the occurrence of systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) among public school female teachers. Methods: a cross-sectional, descriptive and observational study was conducted. A questionnaire elaborated by the researchers was applied to a random sample of 133 female teachers. Noise exposure dosimetry was used among the sample subjects. The non-conditional logistic regression technique was applied to identify significant variables and control confounding variables for the occurrence of SAH. Results: the prevalence of hypertension found, in teachers, in this study, was 17.3%. However, the association between occupational noise exposure and the occurrence of hypertension was not verified. It was observed that smoking is a very relevant risk factor for hypertension, while the physical effort performed at work appeared as a protection factor. Conclusion: although the variable "noise exposure dose" was not significant in the final model, it was found that the exposure values were above the limits, justifying the adoption of preventive measures.