Laboratory investigation on influence of mixture parameters on noise reduction characteristics of porous asphalt concrete

Noise is pervasive in everyday life and can cause both auditory and non-auditory health effects. Noise-induced hearing loss remains highly prevalent in occupational settings, and is increasingly caused by social noise exposure (eg, through personal music players). Our understanding of molecular mechanisms involved in noise-induced hair-cell and nerve damage has substantially increased, and preventive and therapeutic drugs will probably become available within 10 years. Evidence of the non-auditory effects of environmental noise exposure on public health is growing. Observational and experimental studies have shown that noise exposure leads to annoyance, disturbs sleep and causes daytime sleepiness, affects patient outcomes and staff performance in hospitals, increases the occurrence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease, and impairs cognitive performance in schoolchildren. In this Review, we stress the importance of adequate noise prevention and mitigation strategies for public health. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

This study examines the relationship between road traffic noise, self-reported sleep quality and mental health. The study is cross-sectional and based on data from a survey conducted in Oslo, Norway, in 2000. Psychological distress (Hopkins Symptom Checklist, HSCL-25) was measured along with self-reported somatic health, sleep quality, noise sensitivity and socioeconomic variables. Questionnaire data were combined with modeled estimates of noise exposure. The total study sample consisted of 2898 respondents. After adjustment for potential confounders and stratifying for sleep quality, we found a positive, but not statistically significant association between noise exposure and symptoms of psychological distress among participants with poor sleep quality (slope=0.06, 95% CI: -0.02 to 0.13, per 10 dB increase in noise exposure). In the same sleep quality group, we found a borderline statistically significant association between noise exposure and a symptom level indicating a probable mental disorder (HSCL≥1.55) (odds ratio=1.47, 95% CI: 0.99-1.98, per 10 dB increase in noise exposure). We found no association between road traffic noise and mental health among subjects reporting good and medium sleep quality. The results suggest that road traffic noise may be associated with poorer mental health among subjects with poor sleep. Individuals with poor sleep quality may be more vulnerable to effects of road traffic noise on mental health than individuals with better sleep quality.