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The Dilemma of Beethoven’s Deafness

Beethoven was one of the world’s greatest musicians, and his deafness is well known. Many details of his medical conditions are known, and various theories of his hearing loss have been proposed. Ludwig van Beethoven was born in 1770 in...

Listening differences in autistic individuals

In this article Erin Schafer, Lauren Mathews and Andrea Dunn outline the common auditory issues that autistic individuals face in comparison with their neurotypical peers and highlight the need to move beyond the traditional audiologic test battery when working with...

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...

Canine hearing testing and the role of otoacoustic emission tests

Otoacoustic emissions testing is an accepted method of hearing testing in humans, but have you ever considered the situation in dogs? This article discusses deafness and hearing testing in dogs and the current role of OAE testing in this species....

MDT assessment of children and adults with implantable acoustic devices (IADs)

Abi Asher, Clinical Lead for the IAD programme in Cambridge describes how hearing care professionals work together to make the best recommendation for the patient, in turn helping navigate through the various devices now on offer. Multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) are...

Ida Institute’s legacy and the future of person-centred care

Professor Kris English reflects on the IDA Institute’s closure, celebrating its legacy of advancing patient-centred care and reshaping audiological counselling worldwide. In September 2008, the Ida Institute’s Director, Lise Lotte Bundesen, and her team held its inaugural ‘Defining Hearing Seminar’...

The Apple effect: could Apple’s involvement redefine the future of hearing aid technology?

As Apple enters hearing health, this article explores how its tech may reduce stigma and reshape hearing care, without replacing clinical expertise. As hearing health professionals, we are all acutely aware of the gap between prevalence of hearing loss and...

Semi implantable bone conduction devices: challenges and developments

Bone conduction mechanisms and history of bone conduction aids Bone conduction hearing devices work by stimulating hair cells via the bone conduction hearing pathways. These pathways are less well understood than the air conduction pathways, but recent research has shown...

Leadership: in conversation with Dr Joyce Aswani

In certain cultures, it is even more difficult for women to establish roles in leadership due to the pressures put upon them by society to take care of the home and family, often in lieu of furthering their education and...

The pioneers of endoscopy and the sword swallowers

Adolf Kussmaul drew inspiration from an unlikely source to further the development of endoscopy… The early pioneers of airway endoscopy and oesophagoscopy were bedevilled by two major and seemingly insurmountable problems. One was the paucity of light sources, with reliance...