As perícias otorrinolaringológicas por perda auditiva ocupacional do poder judiciário no Rio Grande do Sul - análise no ano 2000

Abstract

This research is an analysis of otolaryngological medico legal investigations that were performed in 2000, at the Justice Tribunal of Rio Grande do Sul, in suspected cases of noise induced hearing loss. 262 medical investigations were analyzed and, therefore, established a noise induced heraring loss profile based on concepts, classification, associations with other pathologies, symptomatology, period of exposure to occupational noise. According to a sample in Rio Grande do Sul, the profile was identified related to age, type of hearing loss, origin, company s line of business, type of lawsuits and the value for compensations. The several aspects examined were compared with medico legal approaches in countries such as The United States, Germany and England, in addition to a wide literature review on concepts and clinical findings of noise induced hearing loss its classification and associations with other pathologies. The audiometric data were analyzed intending to evaluate the hearing loss prevalence in the researched epidemiologic analysis. All the otolaryngological medical investigations without occupational hearing loss allegation or that were not performed in 2000 at the Medical Department of Justice Tribunal of Rio Grande do Sul were eliminated from this research. The results observed related to concepts, clinical findings, classification, and associations with other pathologies are similar to the ones verified by the several authors studied. Equally, Brazilian medico legal approach is similar to the British model and also to the one seen in most states of The United States.