Search

Drawing pictures and telling stories: treating tinnitus in childhood

There is increasing awareness that tinnitus is not restricted to adults. Indeed, the available evidence suggests that some experience of tinnitus in children is fairly common [1]. For many, tinnitus has little effect and requires limited or no intervention. For...

Screening for hearing loss in primary care

Hearing impairment is one physical disability that is increasing in prevalence in society in general, and in older adults in particular. Approximately 34 to 36 million Americans report suffering from some degree of hearing impairment with the number rising to...

Adult hearing screenings has counselling opportunities

Adult hearing screening has its challenges, particularly time constraints. Because the process itself is brief, we could efficiently screen dozens of adults per hour; at events such as health fairs, it’s tempting to march people through screenings as quickly as...

Prudent audiology

Introduction In January 2014, Professor Mark Drakeford, Minister for Health and Social Services, defined Prudent Healthcare as, “Healthcare that fits the needs and circumstances of patients and actively avoids wasteful care that is not to the patient’s benefit.” ‘Prudent’ healthcare...

Noise monitoring on a smartphone

“The smartphone has more computing power than was used to put the first man on the moon.” Robert Eikelboom discusses the potential of the smartphone as an effective noise monitoring device. Noise exposure and public health Excessive exposure to noise...

Hearing care systems – European examples

In this article, Vice President of the European Federation of Hard of Hearing, Lidia Best, explores the drivers for improvement and change in European hearing care systems. In 2010, the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) issued the EN-15927 European Standard...

Human immunodeficiency virus and hearing impairment

With an estimated 36.7 million individuals living with HIV / AIDS and literature reporting that these conditions contribute to hearing loss, it is surprising that more focus and resources are not employed to tackle this major hearing health concern. Yolandé...

Untangling the emotional and physiological aspects of hyperacusis

In hyperacusis, the physiological and the emotional aspects can become deeply entwined. Dr Sarah Theodoroff draws us into her perspectives on this important aspect of the condition. Background Sounds and Emotions The basic act of hearing sounds triggers an emotional...

Misophonia – a psychological disorder?

Historically, there has been disagreement regarding misophonia classification, with questions surrounding whether it is a psychological or physiological disorder. Dr Jennifer Jo Brout discusses misophonia classification, research, and guidelines for the role of the psychologist. Photo courtesy of Pexels. What...

Hearing screening during childhood using speech and sounds in noise

Although there is high prevalence of late-onset, progressive, and acquired hearing losses during childhood, these hearing losses can easily go undetected due to the lack of systematic hearing screening beyond newborn hearing screening. In this article, the authors share the...