Could hospital noise, which has been shown to impede patient recovery, be used as evidence in a medical malpractice lawsuit? Only time will tell, but it’s no secret that hospitals are looking for ways to decrease noise levels.

While bad food used to be the number-one hospital complaint, it’s now the noise level, according to a front-page story in the Chicago Tribune. Noise can make patients sicker or, at the very least, inhibit their recovery. The story notes a Johns Hopkins study showing sound levels have increased significantly since 1960.

Noise in hospitals increases heart rates, blood pressure, respiratory rates and cortisol levels. Patients recovering from surgery in noisy recovery rooms request more pain medication. The most sensitive patients -- pre-term infants -- have an increased risk of hearing loss, brain development, and speech problems when exposed to excessive noise.

At issue, according to one study, is whether hospital noise truly contributes to the ability to heal. One study showed that excessive noise slowed wound healing.

Contributing to the problem is technology. The information age brought with it alarms, motorized beds, monitors and bone-cutting tools. The hospital environment, with its hard, reverberating spaces, contributes to the problem.

Hospitals are beginning to take the noise issue seriously. At Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, a “silent” patient call-button system has reduced the number of intercom pages. Rush’s new hospital, which will open next year, was designed to reduce noise by 90 percent. Hallways will be carpeted, the ventilation system will be quieter, and committees are even looking at adding more sound-absorbing artwork.

Some hospitals have installed a Yacker Tracker in the noisiest areas, like the nurses’ station. Originally marketed for use in school classrooms, the sound meter flashes red when it gets too noisy, but its overall effectiveness is unproven.