In order to protect himself in a chemically contaminated environment, the combat soldier must wear a special jacket, trousers, overboots, rubber gloves, and a gas mask with hood. This clothing system was investigated for its impact upon the soldier's ability to understand human speech in a neutral environment and in a hot-humid environment. The results of this study indicated that, compared to control conditions, the chemical protective clothing has a detrimental effect on the ability to hear human speech and that this decrement is most severe when the chemical protective clothing is worn under hot conditions for extended periods of time.
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