Age Corrections to Audiograms

Using age correction is optional; the employer may choose to adjust audiograms for aging but must follow the procedure in Appendix F when they do. Appendix F itself is labelled non-mandatory guidance and begins by saying an allowance may be made "If the employer chooses to adjust the audiogram," so the choice to apply age corrections is up to the employer. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Follow the three-step procedure in Appendix F exactly: (i) find the age-correction values in Table F-1 (males) or Table F-2 (females) for the age at the most recent audiogram and for the age at the baseline audiogram at each test frequency (1000–6000 Hz); (ii) subtract the baseline-age correction values from the most-recent-age correction values for each frequency; and (iii) treat those differences as the portion of the hearing change attributable to aging and subtract them from the most recent audiogram thresholds. This procedure is described in Appendix F to 1910.95 and is to be used if the employer elects to make age adjustments (see 1910.95).

Choose the baseline audiogram as the audiogram that shows the best (lowest) hearing threshold levels for that employee; Appendix F's example states the baseline is "the audiogram ... since it shows the best hearing threshold levels." In practice you pick the test with the best thresholds (across the tested frequencies) as the baseline, then apply the Appendix F procedure to compare the most recent audiogram to that baseline. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Use Table F-1 for males and Table F-2 for females. Appendix F provides two separate age-correction tables—"Table F-1 - Age Correction Values in Decibels for Males" and "Table F-2 - Age Correction Values in Decibels for Females"—and instructs you to determine the age correction values from the appropriate table by sex. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

The age-correction tables in Appendix F provide values for 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, 3000 Hz, 4000 Hz, and 6000 Hz only. Appendix F repeatedly refers to these five test frequencies and the tables list corrections for 1000–6000 Hz; it does not provide age-correction values for 500 Hz, 8000 Hz, or other frequencies. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Subtract the difference in age-correction values (most recent age row minus baseline age row) from the most recent audiogram threshold at each frequency. Appendix F's example shows: find the age corrections for the two ages at each frequency, compute the difference (e.g., 3 dB at 4000 Hz), subtract that difference from the most recent measured threshold (25 dB − 3 dB = 22 dB), and then compare that adjusted value to the baseline threshold to compute the age-corrected threshold shift. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

The age-corrected shift is the adjusted most-recent threshold minus the baseline threshold: the most recent measured threshold (25 dB) was reduced by the aging contribution (3 dB) to give an adjusted value of 22 dB, and then 22 dB minus the baseline threshold (5 dB) equals a 17 dB age-corrected threshold shift. Appendix F walks through these exact arithmetic steps in its example. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Use the audiogram that shows the best hearing threshold levels as the baseline regardless of its date; Appendix F's example explicitly selects the baseline audiogram at age 27 because it "shows the best hearing threshold levels," even though earlier and later tests exist. After selecting that baseline, apply the Appendix F procedure using the ages of the baseline and the most recent audiogram. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Use the special rows labeled "20 or younger" for any employee age 20 or under and "60 or older" for any employee age 60 or above; Appendix F's Table F-1 and Table F-2 include those grouped rows explicitly and you should pick the appropriate grouped row when an employee falls into those age ranges. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Yes. Appendix F states that the age-correction procedure and tables were developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the document "Criteria for a Recommended Standard" on occupational noise exposure. The appendix explicitly cites NIOSH as the source of the age-correction tables. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

After applying the Appendix F age correction (subtracting the aging contribution from the most recent thresholds), calculate the threshold shift by subtracting the baseline audiogram thresholds from those age-adjusted most recent thresholds; that resulting value is the age-corrected threshold shift you use to determine whether an STS has occurred. Appendix F describes subtracting the baseline from the adjusted annual audiogram to obtain the age-corrected threshold shift; you would then compare that shift to the STS criteria in 1910.95. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

The age-correction procedure in Appendix F applies the age-correction values by audiometric test frequency and does not distinguish different correction tables for left or right ear—use the same age-correction values (from the appropriate sex table) at each frequency for each ear. Appendix F describes determining the age-correction values for "each audiometric test frequency" and shows the example applied to the right ear; the tables themselves list frequency-based corrections without separate ear-specific rows. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Appendix F supplies age-correction values only for 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, and 6000 Hz; it does not provide corrections for frequencies outside that range, so you cannot apply Appendix F age corrections for frequencies not listed. For tests at other frequencies you must rely on other applicable guidance or your own clinical judgment, but Appendix F itself does not supply values for those frequencies. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Appendix F instructs you to subtract the aging contribution from the most recent measured thresholds and then subtract the baseline thresholds to calculate the age-corrected threshold shift; it does not describe special rules for negative results. In other words, you must perform the arithmetic as directed (most-recent threshold minus aging difference, then minus baseline) and record the resulting age‑corrected threshold shift, using that value to determine whether an STS exists under 1910.95. See Appendix F to 1910.95.

Look up the age-correction values for the actual ages at which the baseline and most recent audiograms were taken: find the row for the age of the most recent audiogram and the row for the age of the baseline audiogram in the appropriate table (male or female), then subtract the baseline-row values from the most‑recent-row values at each frequency. Appendix F spells out exactly this two-row lookup and subtraction step. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Appendix F's example explicitly notes that a retest audiogram confirmed the unadjusted shift before showing how to estimate the aging contribution; it therefore assumes you will use a confirmed shift when demonstrating the age-correction calculation. Appendix F focuses on the age-correction math (finding table values, subtracting baseline values, and adjusting the most recent thresholds) once a confirmed shift exists. See the example in Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

No—the same arithmetic procedure applies at each of the five frequencies (1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, and 6000 Hz): find the two age-correction values for that frequency, compute their difference (most recent age minus baseline age), subtract that difference from the most recent measured threshold at that frequency, then subtract the baseline threshold to get the age-corrected shift. Appendix F demonstrates this identical per-frequency procedure in its example. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Yes—Appendix F specifies that employers who choose to adjust audiograms "shall follow the procedure described below" and it provides the age-correction tables (F-1 and F-2) to be used; the appendix therefore requires following its lookup-and-subtract method and the provided tables when making the adjustment. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

If both audiograms were taken at the same age row in the appropriate table, the age-correction values for that age will be identical and their difference will be zero, so Appendix F's method yields an aging contribution of 0 dB at every frequency. In that case the age adjustment does not change the measured thresholds and the unadjusted threshold shift is used. See Appendix F to 1910.95 and 1910.95.

Appendix F is titled "Calculations and Application of Age Corrections to Audiograms" and appears as "Appendix F to 1910.95" in OSHA's noise standard; it is explicitly identified as a non-mandatory appendix to 1910.95. You can view the appendix at Appendix F to 1910.95 and more generally at 1910.95.