Awareness

Hearing help out of reach for most in Pakistan

Details: Published on 07 May 2013

The prevalence of hearing loss in Pakistan is 1.6 percent per 1,000 population and rising, according to an ENT surgeon at Allama Iqubal Medical College/Jinnah Hospital. Professor Rashid Zia says that 70% of the country’s population is facing challenges of hereditary hearing loss. The WHO estimates that 278 million people worldwide have a disabling hearing impairment and this could increase

New York Times editor lied about hearing loss: Book

Details: Published on 24 April 2013

Katherine Bouton got tired of lying about her hearing loss and faking her way through life. A former editor at the New York times, Bouton, 65, has documented her struggles in a new book, Shouting Won’t Help: Why I – and 50 Million Other Americans – Can’t Hear You.

Today, she routinely lets people know that she is profoundly deaf in one ear and very

Noise induced hearing loss

Details: Published on 23 April 2013

Permanent, noise-induced hearing loss is the chief health hazard in occupational and recreational situations, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Of the 30 million reported cases of hearing loss in the United States, one third is related to noise exposure. Noise-induced hearing loss involves the degeneration and irreparable loss of cochlear hair cells, which leads to auditory threshold deterioration. Noise can act as a mechanical stressor by overstretching inner ear tissues. If noise is too intense, it can also lead to vascular constriction, which reduces

Who Has the Loudest Fans?

Details: Published on 19 April 2013

Do you ever wonder what baseball teams in America have the loudest baseball fans? Starkey Technologies offers up this “unscientific” assessment.

1. San Francisco Giants

The reigning World Series Champions are well-known for having some of the loudest and rowdiest fans, particularly during their playoff runs. In fact, national sportscaster and World Series play-by-play man Joe Buck even declared Giant’s AT&T Park the “loudest I have ever been in” during the 2012 World Series!

2. Minnesota Twins

Okay, perhaps a “homer” pick for the team closest to Starkey Hearing Technologies’ corporate headquarters! However, there is no

Dyslexia and hearing loss

Details: Published on 17 April 2013

Researchers at Northwestern University may have discovered a link between dyslexia and hearing.

The Chicago researchers recorded the brainwaves of 100 children with normal hearing, aged six to 13. Using scalp electrodes, they measured the children’s neural responses as they listened to the syllables “ba” and “ga”.

The brainwaves of dyslexic children showed erratic patterns, indicating the children

CASLPA applauds federal initiatives for Canada’s aboriginal communities

Details: Published on 15 April 2013

Measures announced in the Canadian government’s 2013 budget will have a positive impact on the health of aboriginal Canadians, says the Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Speech Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA).

Joanne Charlebois says the measures will improve health care and education on reserves.

“Healthcare for Aboriginal communities has been an ongoing issue of concern for CASLPA,” she says. “The current lack of access to speech-language pathology and audiology services has serious repercussions. It’s important to note

National Hearing Plan for Samoa

Details: Published on 08 April 2013

National and international stakeholders gathered last week to refine and contribute to the National Hearing Services Plan for Samoa which is set for implementation in July. The effort is funded under the Samoa-Australia Partnership for Development and will expand hearing services to cover a wider scope of the community.

Participants at the meeting were briefed on

New York Mayor takes aim at hearing loss

Details: Published on 06 April 2013

New York mayor and health advocate Michael Bloomberg has launched an effort to warn of the dangers of using personal listening devices (PLDs) at high volumes. The quarter of a million dollar Hearing Loss Prevention Media Campaign will use social media and focus groups to warn young people about losing their hearing through the improper use of ear buds and other PLDs.

It is estimated that iPods, at maximum volume, can reach

Jan Grote: Without hearing no development

Details: Published on 04 April 2013

In 1995 the World Health Assembly in Geneva adopted a resolution to make prevention of hearing problems a priority. Subsequently nothing happened. Half of the hearing problems in developing countries can be prevented with relatively simple and cost effective means. Dr. Jan Grote, former secretary general of IFOS, decided to act on it and initiated the worldwide project ’Hearing for all’. His message to governments and NGOs: integrate primary hear care in primary education. “When nothing is done, five to ten percent of the children don’t get a proper education because of hearing problems - and thus hardly stand a chance in the labour market.” After years of relentless lobbying, there are now breakthroughs.

Another rockstar with tinnitus

Details: Published on 29 March 2013

Noel Gallagher former guitarist and frontman of British rock band Oasis reveals he’s suffering from tinnitus. He was recently diagnosed after a brain scan prescribed when he started complaining about a ringing in his ear. According to doctors, the affliction is probably due to his years performing at ear-splitting volumes. In an interview with