Association between limitation at work because of the voice, working conditions and social vulnerability of metropolitan schools in Brazil

ABSTRACT

Purpose

To verify the prevalence of limitations at work due to the voice of Brazilian basic education teachers in metropolitan schools and the association with working hours, self-reported noise and Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) in schools.

Methods

Cross-sectional observational study with a probabilistic sample of Brazilian teachers. A total of 4979 teachers from metropolitan schools participated and the following variables were analyzed: age, gender, level of education, workday for 40 hours/week or more, perception of intense noise with the need to raise the voice and SVI of the municipality. Descriptive analysis and multivariate Poisson regression model with robust variance were performed and a significance level of 5%.

Results

The Brazilian prevalence of limitation at work due to voice was 20.37%. It was found that there was a statistically significant difference between limitation at work due to voice and being female, elementary school level or combined levels, 40 or more working hours , perception of raising one’s voice in the presence of intense noise at work and medium and high/very high SVI.

Conclusion

Of every 100 teachers, approximately 20 reported limitations at work due to voice in Brazil, and considering the federative units, higher prevalences were observed in the North and Northeast regions. Being female, working 40 hours or more per week, teaching elementary school or at combined levels, perceiving raising one’s voice due to intense noise, and working in schools located in regions with medium, high/very high SVI increased the prevalence of perception of limitation at work due to vocal problems.

Keywords:
Voice Disorders; Work conditions; Social vulnerability; School teachers; Occupacional health