The first time I ever saw a cochlear implant, it was on the shaved head of my new neighbor, a kindly retired librarian. I actually thought it was some kind of fancy Bluetooth device. I was that clueless. My education came quickly enough, though.
Making Sound More Visual for Students With Hearing Loss in Your Virtual Classroom
Due to COVID-19, most classrooms will look different this fall. Some will exist in person with social distancing measures in place, while others will be entirely virtual. Many will be a hybrid of both face-to-face and online instruction. As always, there will still be students ready to learn and caring teachers eager to take on the curriculum.
Register for the Inaugural Hearing Health Hour Webinar
On Monday, October 26 at 5 PM EDT, Hearing Health Foundation (HHF) will host its first Hearing Health Hour event on Zoom. Presented quarterly, Hearing Health Hour is a lay-friendly webinar series about managing hearing loss and related conditions and research updates presented by Emerging Research Grants (ERG) recipients.
Hearing Restoration Project Plans Announced for 2020–21
Hearing loss occurs when sensory hair cells of the inner ear (cochlea) are damaged or die. The goal of the Hearing Restoration Project (HRP) is to develop therapeutic methods to convert the cells that remain after damage into new, completely functional sensory hair cells, restoring hearing. We know that in most species—but not mammals, like humans and mice—hair cells robustly regenerate on their own after damage to the auditory system.
Association Between Nonoptimal Blood Pressure and Cochlear Function
High blood pressure (BP) is a common chronic condition in the United States with an estimated prevalence among adults of 31 percent, or 69 million. In addition to an increased risk of stroke and heart disease, elevated BP may also increase risk of hearing loss. In fact, the two commonly co-occur. Numerous studies have evaluated the association between hearing loss and risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including high BP.
Teaching by Example
I am open with my students about my hearing loss. I want them to be as comfortable with it as I am, and understand it requires some adjustment on their part, just as it does on mine. In order to hear them I have to ask for silence in the classroom when another student is speaking, because background noise is a killer when I am trying to listen to someone individually.
Where Does Audiology Go From Here?
In this new climate, remote care and telehealth are helping audiologists bridge the gap of hearing healthcare accessibility. Among our network of clinics across the United Kingdom, immediate challenges included a lack of equipment, online accessibility, and experience offering telehealth. We also found that generally only premium hearing aid models included embedded remote care features, so that this service was not available to everyone.
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Overcome Pediatric Listening Difficulties
Listening difficulties occur in children diagnosed with auditory processing disorders (also known as central auditory processing disorders) and may co-occur in children who have developmental language disorder or attention/memory deficits. Persistent listening difficulties negatively affect children's learning and functioning. Studying factors that influence children’s listening performance using a unified multidisciplinary approach is crucial to better identify and manage deficits that contribute to listening difficulties in children.
True Talent Comes in All Forms
We can’t let other people dictate who we are, only you know who you are and what you can do. I want to prove to myself and show others what I can accomplish and succeed at despite my hearing loss. Another motivation is seeing the lack of individuals with disabilities in TV and film. There are some actors who are deaf or hard of hearing, but they represent a very small percentage of the entertainment industry.
Unlocking the Key to My Problems With Balance
I am an associate professor at Oregon Health & Science University and became interested in the fields of hearing research, biomedical engineering, and neuroscience in part from my own hearing loss. I have had severe to profound hearing loss since early childhood, diagnosed at 2 ½ years old. Fitted with powerful hearing aids, I learned to speak and listen only with intensive speech therapy. I am the only person with a hearing loss in my family, so we always thought the cause was due to illness or possibly ototoxic drugs.