What is Tinnitus? ATA Explains

The American Tinnitus Association (ATA) defines tinnitus as “the perception of sound in the ears or head where no external source is present.” One of the most common ways of developing tinnitus is exposure to sounds that are too loud. What sounds are considered too loud? American and European standards state that exposure to sounds over 85 dB for an eight-hour period could cause problems (ata.org). ATA offers the following guideline:

“If you are standing three feet away from someone and cannot hear what they are saying, the noise level could be damaging to your health.”

Other causes of tinnitus include head and neck trauma, certain disorders (hypo- or hyperthyroidism, Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, and thoracic outlet syndrome), certain types of tumors, wax build-up, jaw misalignment, cardiovascular disease, and ototoxicity. Regardless, it is important to remember that tinnitus is a symptom, not a disease. Hearing loss and tinnitus can occur simultaneously, but this is not always the case (ata.org). Consult your audiologist if you think you may be effected by tinnitus and/or hearing loss.

Tinnitus can be extremely intrusive, effecting one’s ability to concentrate, work, and maintain healthy relationships. This can leave one feeling extremely isolated, when in reality, about 50 million Americans suffer from tinnitus (ata.org).

“About 50 million Americans suffer from tinnitus (ata.org).”

Tinnitus ranges from a brief tone (transient tinnitus) heard at night to a continuous sound of varying pitch levels. It effects men and women of all ages and backgrounds. Although there is no cure for tinnitus, there are ways to manage it, including sound therapy, medications, relaxation techniques, biofeedback, and cognitive behavioral therapy (Tinnitus Today).

Check out the following video with Dr. Jack Vernon, Ph.D., co-founder of the American Tinnitus Association and an honorary director, to learn more about tinnitus:

The American Tinnitus Association offers a wonderful list of tips on how to manage tinnitus, including diagnosing and understanding, finding effective treatment and care, the effect of one’s attitude on their tinnitus, and information on support. Click here to learn more.

SOURCES: ata.org, Tinnitus Today

Top 5 Things Every Hearing Aid User Should Know About Telecoils

A telecoil is a tiny coil of wire inside a hearing aid that enables it to pick up electromagnetic waves from a broadcast. So what’s the big idea? Read on to find out the “Top 5 Things Every Hearing Aid User Should Know about Telecoils.”

Telecoils allow individuals to have sound broadcast directly to their hearing aids, eliminating distracting background noises.

1. Telecoils enhance speech understanding.

Originally, telecoils were only used to improve one’s ability to understand speech on the telephone while wearing a hearing aid. Currently, telecoils also connect users to various assistive listening devices (ALDs), including wireless transmitters for television, personal FM systems, and induction loop systems.

The TV Ears TV is a prime example of the modern use of a telecoil to connect an individual to an induction loop system; the  TV Ears 2.3 Link System is also designed to work with  t-coil enabled hearing aids. The audio from your television is picked up by the TV Ears Link and sent to your hearing aids. This is an ideal set up for those who want to improve their understanding of TV dialog while still wearing their hearing aids.

Dr. Brad Smith emphasizes the benefit of this enhancement in an article on hearinglossweb.com:

“These assistive devices can offer speech understanding that is far superior to that which can be obtained with hearing aids alone in certain listening situations.”

2. Users should check with their audiologists about real ear measurements.

Real ear measurements can be taken when using a programmable telecoil. The user simply listens to their phone, ALD, or nearby loop system while  measurements are taken. Adjustments are then made to optimize speech clarity, audibility, and comfort. Follow-up tuning may then be necessary but these real ear measurements are an excellent start to getting the most from your telecoil (hearinglossweb.com).

3. Induction loop systems have existed for years…so why aren’t they everywhere?

Telecoils allow users to have broadcasts sent directly to their hearing aids or cochlear implants when loop systems are present. When a public space makes use of loop system technology, individuals with hearing impairments are suddenly included, rather than being excluded as background noise drowns out clarity of speech. According to A Loopy Idea That Works: Using Telecoils to Turn Hearing Aids into Mini Loudspeakers,

“Implementation has lagged, advocates say, because not enough is being done to promote their use.”

4. Telecoils are present in hearing aids more often than not.

When hearing aid professionals were surveyed in 2009, 58% reported fitting hearing aids with telecoils. In one survey, 84% of Hearing Loss Association of America members reported having hearing aids with telecoils. While people with in-the-canal hearing aids originally could not benefit from this technology, today telecoils are being made small enough to benefit “all but the tiniest hearing aids,” according to audiological researcher-writer Mark Ross (hearingloop.org).

5. Using your t-coil couldn’t be easier.

Literally, all you need to do is switch your hearing aid from “M” (microphone) to “T” (telecoil) for all the benefits of an individual broadcast. Hearing aids can be retrofitted for telecoils and account for about $50 of the overall cost for a $1500 to $3500 hearing aid (hearing-loss-help-co.com).

SOURCES: http://www.hearing-loss-help-co.com, http://www.hearingloop.org, http://www.scientificamerican.com, http://www.hearinglossweb.com, http://www.tvears.com

The First FDA Approved Implanted Hearing Aid

See your physician for more information on the first FDA approved totally implanted hearing aid.

On Wednesday, March 17, the FDA approved the first implanted hearing system, the Esteem. This exciting new technology offers users, “an option to alleviate their hearing loss by using a device with no readily visible external components,” said Jeffrey Shuren, M.D., J.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (PR Newswire). But like any new piece of technology, answers to pertinent questions must be explored before diving in.

Who can use Esteem?

Esteem was created for those with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss, aged 18 and older. One must also have a normally functioning Eustachian tube as well as normal middle ear anatomy.

How does it work?

The Esteem is composed of external and implantable components. Externally, testing and programming instruments are available; a sound processor, sensor, and driver, are implanted internally. The following steps occur to make this instrument work for those with hearing loss:

1. Vibrations from the eardrum and middle ear bones are picked up by sensors.
2. Sensors convert the vibrations into electrical signals.
3. Electrical signals are sent to the sound processor.
4. The sound processor amplifies and filters the electrical signals to compensate for the user’s hearing loss.
5. The amplified and filtered electrical signals are converted back to vibrations by the driver.
6. The vibrations are sent to the inner ear where they are perceived as sound.

Where can you find the Esteem?

The Esteem is only available by the order of a physician. See your physician for more information.

To find an audiologist in your area, go to www.tvears.com and enter your zip code under “Find a U.S. Dealer Near You” on the left hand side of the screen.

How have people responded thus far?

• 93% scored equal to or better than their pre-implant hearing aids on a speech intelligibility test.
• 7% scored less than with their pre-implant hearing aids on a speech intelligibility test.
• 56% scored better than with their pre-implant hearing aids on a speech intelligibility test.

What are potential problems?

Somewhat disturbing, participants in a multi-center clinical study of the Esteem (held by Envoy Medical Corporation of St. Paul, Minnesota)  reported the following side-effects, although the majority of these effects were reportedly resolved during the one-year study period:

• 7% of participants experienced facial paralysis (result of surgery)
• 42% experienced taste disturbance (result of surgery)

SOURCES: prnewswire.com, audiologyindia.com, tvears.com

Link Between Hearing Loss and Pain Killers Explained

All that stress at work gives you a headache, so you take an aspirin. You work extra hard at the gym, (maybe to help alleviate that stress?), but now your muscles are tight. So you take an anti-inflammatory pill. Maybe the pain hasn’t hit you yet today, but you want to prevent further discomfort. Taking two Tylenol is not going to hurt you. Or is it? New research says that men under 50 who regularly take analgesics (pain killers) have an increased risk of hearing loss.

The study, which can be found in the March 2010 issue of The American Journal of Medicine, was conducted by researchers at Harvard University. According to the report, men under 50 who took ibuprofen and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) at least twice a week, or who used acetaminophen regularly, increased their risk of hearing loss by 33%. Regular use of aspirin for between 1 and 4 years increased the risk of hearing loss by 28%. Interestingly, longer duration of use (beyond 4 years) did not increase the risk of hearing loss.

New research says that men under 50 who regularly use pain killers have an increased risk of hearing loss.

The findings broken down more specifically by age group were also noteworthy: older age-groups were only slightly impacted by the regular use of analgesics. For example, while men aged 50-59 showed a 33% increased risk of hearing loss as a result of using aspirin regularly, men aged 60 years and older demonstrated no association between regular use of aspirin and hearing loss.

With regards to acetaminophen use, regular users under 50 years of age were 99% more likely to develop hearing loss than non-users. This statistic dropped dramatically when examining those 60 years of age and older (only 16% more likely).

It is important to remember that a doctor’s recommendation should always take precedence when considering studies such as this one. Acetaminophen or aspirin may be prescribed by a medical professional to relieve arthritis pain, reduce fever, and even prevent recurrent stroke or heart attack (medicinenet.com). This study merely suggests that one should be cognizant of his or her use of pain killers as connections have been made between regular usage and hearing loss.

SOURCES: The American Journal of Medicine, medicinenet.com: acetaminophen, medicinenet.com: aspirin

Hearing Aids for Veterans

The shattering noise of roadside bombs is one reason veterans in the war on terrorism are coming home with hearing loss. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), hearing damage is the number one disability caused by this war. Roughly 70,000 troops are on disability for tinnitus and more than 58,000 are on disability for hearing loss (military.com).

Where can these men and women find help? The United States Department of Veterans Affairs provides an online resource page directing veterans to hearing help. The FAQ page explains that hearing aids are available to veterans with “a documented service connected to hearing loss…(those) receiving a disability rating of 10% or more…and some with very special needs” (va.gov).

To receive help from the Veterans Administration (VA), veterans must be service-connected to hearing loss. Veterans who already hold this status may contact a VA Audiology Clinic directly. Those who are not service-connected must first register as a VA patient, then be examined to determine if hearing loss occurred while in the military. If hearing loss is determined to be connected with military service, veterans are then scheduled for a hearing test to see if a hearing aid is needed.

Sound complicated? Filling out the paperwork alone can be daunting for some. But there are folks out there eager to help:

• In Tahlequah, Oklahoma, service officers from the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 3707 make themselves available between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., the second and fourth Wednesdays each month to help veterans fill out paperwork. Read more here.

• The St. Johns County, Florida, government website recommends that veterans receive an audiology exam by a Board Certified Audiologist before attempting to file a hearing loss claim. They provide the following sample letter for those wishing to go this route here.

As VFW service officer Gene Allen told the Telequah Daily Press, “There are some things veterans don’t know they have access to, depending on their situation.” Whether you are a veteran who wishes to receive help through the VA or through other means, help is available.

SOURCES: Telequah Daily Press, Military.com, U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs, Saint Johns County Government Gateway