Aryn Brown Adi Smith

Cricket Collinsworth LaKeta Mayfield

Tyra LeBlanc

Hearing Health

What is Hearing Health?

• Hearing Health can

be summed up into

three basic roles:

Detection

Prevention

Management

• How do I know when something is wrong?

• What can I do to reduce my chances of having early in life hearing loss?

• Do I have options once I have passed the prevention stage?

How does it work?

– Hearing is very important, yet complex

– At birth, the ear is a fully developed part of our body

– The ear is divided into three parts• Outer• Middle• Inner

Some Ways To Prevent Hearing Loss

Avoid loud noises and take precautions like ear plugs and head phones to soften noise and protect your ears when working in loud environments. This is the second leading cause of hearing loss.

Limit use of certain medicines like aspirin or take them in lower doses. Other types of medicines are NSAIDS and erectile dysfunction drugs.

Limit use of drugs and alcohol, too much alcohol can lead to hearing loss.

Some Ways To Prevent Hearing Loss

Avoid using cotton swabs for cleaning ears these cannot only damage the small hairs that line the ear that are essential to hearing, it can

impact the wax in your ear creating a bigger problem or it can even break the tympanic

membrane, or the ear drum in layman's terms.

Avoid smoking tobacco products. One of the biggest concerns for what causes hearing loss is due to the boomers smoking in their youth.

Some Ways To Prevent Hearing Loss

See an audiologist on a regular basis.

They can be found in doctors offices and

hospitals. There are also many found

with their own private clinics. It is important

to be tested on a regular basis.

Don't wait! Get checked now and then get rechecked every year.

Hearing Loss Statistics

17%, 36 million American adults report some degree of hearing loss

47%, 75 and older have hearing loss

Men have a higher chance of developing a hearing impairment

Tinnitus(ringing in the ears) is a symptom of hearing loss

Potential Causes Of Hearing Loss

 Damage to inner ear is known as sensorineural hearing loss(see images). If there is damage here, then sound signals are not sent to the brain. 

Conductive hearing loss occurs in the outer or middle ear 

Fluid build up from an ear infection forms a barrier

Tumors

Unusual bone growth 

Potential Causes Of Hearing Loss

Ruptured ear

drum  Aging; hearing loss due to

exposure to loud noises over long periods of time 

Occupational noises such as in factory work

 High fever can cause damage to the

inner ear

Congenital if hearing loss is present at birth(such

as birth

defects)

Hearing Aids

• While hearing loss is preventable it still happens and often times

people do not seek out the treatment they need. For people who do

seek out treatment one of the options is hearing aids.

• Hearing aids are a type of assistive device that picks sound waves

and then amplifies them through a speaker directly into the ear canal.

The settings can be changed to fit each individual’s hearing loss.

Hearing Aids

• A correctly fitting hearing aid is essential to them functioning properly.

If they do not fit there may be loud feedback and high pitched

whistling to not only the person with the hearing aid but also to those

around them.

• Advanced hearing aids can be hooked up to TVs and blue tooth devices.

Hearing Aids

• Hearing aids must be maintained throughout the entire time that they

are owned. They first must be set to a lower volume setting and then

gradually raised so that the listener can adapt and get used to the

sound before it is raised.

• Only one person out of every five people who need hearing aids get

them.

Cochlear Implant

Rush Limbaughcochlear implant recipient

• He began working in radio in the 60’s

• He became a successful national celebrity in his career in talk show radio

• He experienced profound hearing loss caused by autoimmune inner ear disease in 2000

• In 2001, he received the cochlear implant and was able to continue the job he loves

What is a Cochlear Implant?

“A cochlear implant (CI) is a small, complex electronic device that can help to provide a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard-of-hearing.” (NIDCD)

• Unlike a hearing aid, the cochlear implant bypasses the damaged portion of the ear to stimulate the auditory nerve.

• The disease Rush had attacked his cochlea and disabled his hearing so an implant was necessary to restore it.

How Does the CI Work?

“Cochlear implants (CI) have external parts and internal parts that work together to allow the user to perceive sound.” (ASHA)

External• Microphone• Speech processor• Transmitter

Internal• Receiver• Electrodes

Who Can Receive a CI?

• When hearing loss is discovered, a primary care physician will refer the patient to an Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor (ENT) to decide if that person is a candidate for a CI.

• Some people who experience hearing loss are able to supplement that loss with hearing aids. In this case, an implant surgery is not necessary.

Who benefits from a CI?

• According to ASHA, benefits depend on many factors: – The age of the patient when he or she receives the implant

• From birth to the age of six is a crucial language learning period of development. After the age of six, learning language will be slightly more difficult but not impossible.

– Whether the hearing loss was present before or after the patient developed language skills

• If an adult was hearing before the loss occurred, he or she will benefit greatly from the implant with little rehabilitation.

• A previously deaf adult receiving an implant will not benefit much because he or she has missed the crucial language learning development window.

– The motivation of the patient and his or her family• Getting a cochlear implant is a life changing experience that requires hard work

and dedication. It takes a team of people to help someone through the changes that are to come.

Strengths of a Cochlear Implant

• The greatest benefit of the CI is the ability to perceive sound.– According to the FDA:

• Adults often benefit immediately• Most perceive loud, medium, and soft sounds.

– Such as footsteps, slamming doors, or the rustling of leaves

• Many understand speech without lip-reading• Many can make telephone calls, watch TV more

easily, and even listen to music! • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDD7Ohs5tAk

Risks and Limitations of the CI

• There are a list of medical risks when peforming the surgery.– These range from infection to fluid leaks or even injury

to the facial nerve.

• After reception of the implant, other issues can and will arise:– A previously hearing person may hear sounds

differently than they did before.– Residual hearing is usually lost which makes reversing

the surgery impossible.• Residual hearing is what little natural hearing a

person has before the implant.– May have difficulty learning language– May not be able to upgrade implant when newer,

better implants are created

More Limitations of the CI

• Limitations of the Cochlear Implant continued:– May not be able to have certain medical examinations such as an MRI– The implant depends on batteries that will need to be changed out and

replacing damaged parts can be expensive

After receiving the CI, rehabilitation is required.o Tedious rehabilitation is required to teach previously deaf people how to

use the new sounds that they are hearing.o After the age of six, the crucial window of language developement has

closed and will make learning language more difficult but not impossible.

o Previously deaf adults may not ever be able to fully understand or use language like previously deaf children

Availability of the CI to Providers

• The Cochlear Implant technology is not available to all providers. There are specialists who can determine the need for a CI and sub-specialists who actually perform the surgery.

• A primary care physician will refer a person to an otolaryngologist if hearing impairment is suspected. If the otolaryngologist believes the person is a candidate for the CI, he or she will be referred to an Otologist for the implant surgery. – “An otologist/neurotologist is a board-certified otolaryngologist who

provides medical and surgical care of patients, both adult and pediatric, with diseases that affect the ears, balance system, temporal bone, skull base, and related structures of the head and neck.” (UMMC)

• Speech-Language Pathologists work with patients after the reception of the implant to habilitate or rehabilitate them into the hearing world.

Quality of Life after CI Reception

After rehabilitation, a Cochlear Implant receiver can now perceive and identify speech and sounds.

This means that a person can now:

• Climb the corporate ladder

• Gossip with friends • And listen to music!

Works Cited

• Boswell, S. (n.d.). Cochlear Implants. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association | ASHA. Retrieved May 4, 2012, from http://www.asha.org/public/hearing/Cochlear-Implant/

• Burke, L., & Weill, B. (2008). Information technology for the health professions (3. ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall.

• Cochlear Implant - YouTube . (n.d.). YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. . Retrieved May 4, 2012, from

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmNpP2fr57A • Cochlear Implants. (n.d.). U S Food and Drug Administration Home Page. Retrieved

May 4, 2012, from http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/ImplantsandProsthetics/CochlearImplants/default.htm

• Cochlear Implants . (n.d.). National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders [NIDCD] . Retrieved May 4, 2012, from http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/pages/coch.aspx

• What is an Otologist / Neurotologist?. (n.d.). University of Maryland Medical Center | Home. Retrieved May 6, 2012, from http://www.umm.edu/otolaryngology/otolo_neuro.htm

References

• Spyridakou, C. (2012). HEARING LOSS: A HEALTH PROBLEM FOR ALL AGES. Primary Health Care, 22(4), 16-20.

• Noonan, D., Ulick, J., Springen, K., & Scelfo, J. (2005). A Little Bit Louder, Please. (Cover story). Newsweek, 145(23), 42-49

• Unknown(2011). Prevention. Retrieved from:http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/guide/hearing-loss-prevention

• Unknown(2011). 10 Ways to Prevent Hearing Loss. Retrieved from:http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/10-ways-prevent-hearing-loss