During my third year at University of Michigan, where I was studying biochemistry and French, I became aware of an unfamiliar, jarring sensation—extreme dizziness. If I closed my eyes for just a little bit, I’d feel my surroundings spinning. It was around the same time I recognized my difficulties hearing in large lecture halls.
Evidence of Brain Tissue Damage From Blast Overpressure
Our results indicate that a single unilateral blast significantly impairs the structural and functional integrity at all levels of the central auditory neuraxis, or the auditory pathway in the higher brain centers. Overall, it is evident that the structural integrity of brain tissue is compromised at all levels.
Memories and Music: My Life as a Real-Life ‘CODA’
I cannot tell you how many times in my 32 years people have asked me, “What is it like to have parents who are deaf?” My answer has always been the same, regardless of who is asking or how old I am, “What is it like to have hearing parents?”
A Historical Perspective on Surgery to Treat Ménière’s Disease
Since it was first discovered, Ménière’s disease has been a disorder managed primarily by otolaryngologists. As a result, surgical treatments have accompanied attempts at medical management. Inspired by patients' sensations of ear fullness and later by the histologic findings of hydrops, surgeons began manipulating the membranous labyrinth to relieve episodes of vertigo while attempting to preserve hearing.
A ‘Complicated and Special’ Case
In June 2010, I stepped off a plane in Los Angeles with a painfully full left ear, muffled hearing, throbbing eyes, vertigo, and a migraine. I also got off that plane with no idea I would straddle the line between a nondisabled and disabled identity for the rest of my life.
Family and Friends Don't Understand Your Hearing Challenges?
If, like me, you have a hearing loss, you know what your hearing challenges are. But what about your friends and family? Do they have challenges communicating with you? I bet the answer is yes. Why wouldn’t they? Hearing loss is a communication disorder that affects all the people in our lives.
A Multimodal Cell Census and Atlas of the Mammalian Primary Motor Cortex
In a paper published in Nature in October 2021, scientists including Ronna Hertzano, M.D., Ph.D., and Seth Ament, Ph.D., both at the University of Maryland and both members of Hearing Health Foundation’s Hearing Restoration Project, present the cell census and atlas of cell types in the primary motor cortex of the mouse, marmoset, and human.
Just Because Hearing Loss Is Invisible Doesn’t Mean It’s Less Real
I think because I was in my 20s and thought working at a nightclub was fun and interesting, and I was surrounded by talented musicians and entertainers, I didn’t stop to consider that I was going to the equivalent of four concerts a week. Not even concerts with two-hour sets—more like multi-day music festivals with four bands each performing two-hour sets!
To Create a Culture Shift About Healthy Hearing, Start Young (and Other Key Strategies)
Finding answers to fundamental questions—such as, “Why does this age group enjoy loud sounds?,” “What impact does hearing damage have on this age group?,” “What will truly motivate them to use hearing protection devices?”—will help develop effective and sustainable hearing conservation programs.
10 Ways to Develop Accessibility in the Workplace
Accessibility is making sure everyone—whether disabled or abled—has easy access around the workplace as well as its facilities. The concept of accessibility at work goes far beyond physical access and involves so much more.