Month: March 2021

Are the Deaf Athletes Ready for the 2021 Deaflympics?
30Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Awareness

Are the Deaf Athletes Ready for the 2021 Deaflympics?

The 24th Summer Deaflympics organizers stay persistent to push through with the sporting event on December 5 to 21 this year in Caxias do Sul, Brazil amidst the threats of the pandemic. The last Deaflympics happened last 2017 in Turkey. It was joined by 5,000 athletes who showed finesse in 21 sports. The heads of the organizing committee, Emir Jose Alves da Silva and Evaldo Antonio Kuiava, although determined to make the Deaflympics happen, are hesitant to risk the security of the event. They said that they assured the participating countries in writing that they’re committed to making it happen with three possible scenarios in mind of how it’ll take place to ensure the delegates’ safety from the worldwide health threat. Meanwhile, Ankara, Turkey is being eyed by Greece as the hos...
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School Noise Impairs Hearing of Cafeteria Lady, Damages Are Paid
26Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Awareness

School Noise Impairs Hearing of Cafeteria Lady, Damages Are Paid

In the autonomous community of Basque, Spain, lies the town of Portugalete where a cafeteria assistant, under the employment of GastronomiaCantabrica, suffered from a hearing loss due to her job. The lady is said to have been working at the school for 30 years, being exposed to the noise from children and banging cutleries which caused her to develop bilateral sensorineural hearing impairment. The noise during the buzzing lunchtime hours can reach 80 decibels or more, enough for some to be diagnosed with the cafeteria lady’s condition after habitual exposure. However, her hearing loss did not affect her ability to recognize speech. So, even though it had significant effects on her hearing, it was not considered disabling. As a result, she was awarded €1,800 for the damages. The amoun...
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Psychologists Must Prevent “Tinnitus Timebomb” Explosion
23Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Research

Psychologists Must Prevent “Tinnitus Timebomb” Explosion

Tinnitus happens when a person hears a sound without an external source. This condition torments people and compromises their quality of life. The pandemic made the case worse for these patients as it prevents their much-needed care from GPs and specialists from coming. For this reason, the BTA or British Tinnitus Association’s battle cry is for psychologists and other secondary care professionals to step in and address the mental health challenges brought by this condition. This condition has been linked to depression and anxiety. Data show that GPs had to refer tinnitus patients to tinnitus and ENT specialists because they can reduce the patients’ stress by 1.7%. But due to the pandemic and the social restrictions it caused, 1 in 3 GPs have had rejected referrals to specialists. ...
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Crossover Learning: Periodontology Meets Audiology
23Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Profession

Crossover Learning: Periodontology Meets Audiology

The continuous development and widening of the horizons of various medical professions can be achieved through crossover learning. If one is to organize and motivate medical professionals to embrace this practice, one can contribute greatly to the advancement of science and health care. Take Javier Garcia, for example. He was able to gain more than 2,000 members for the Spanish Society of Periodontology and Osseointology when he took charge of communications and marketing in 2010. Although only 621 delegates made it to the congress that year in Catalonia, it was still considered a good achievement for a European congress. In 2019, however, Garcia wowed the world when he, as the Executive Director of the association, managed to round up 6,290 delegates in Valencia for the SEPA. Accord...
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Navigating Through the Pandemic: Operational Guidelines from Authorities in Audiology
23Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Profession

Navigating Through the Pandemic: Operational Guidelines from Authorities in Audiology

Providing health care services started getting tricky because of the limitations caused by COVID-19. Work is encumbered but it can continue. To keep the profession alive and capable of serving the people in need of hearing care, the principal authorities in audiology in the United Kingdom namely the British Academy of Audiology (BAA), the Association of Independent Hearing Healthcare Professionals (AIHHP), the British Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists (BSHAA), and the British Society of Audiology (BSA), have formulated and released the COVID-19 guidelines. This document contains the precautions, PPEs, and minimum standard health protocols that hearing care services providers need to follow to ensure their and their customers' safety. It was updated last January 2021. The aforementi...
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Tapping into Deep Neural Networks Advancing Hearing Care Technology
22Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Research

Tapping into Deep Neural Networks Advancing Hearing Care Technology

Thomas Behrens of Oticon has something to say regarding technological advancements in AI when it comes to hearing health. Behrens is the company’s Senior Director of the Centre for Applied Audiology Research. He has first-hand knowledge on the focus of hearing aid technology, how instruments are being developed, the benefits to users, etc. According to Behrens, they have uncovered new information about the brain’s auditory center which allowed them to reinvent hearing technology, focusing on deep neural networks instead of noise reduction. Behrens added that deep neural networks allow the brain to create a complete sound scene so it can focus on what it needs to pay attention to. To create these sound scenes, they developed an AI that can take more detail into account so that the per...
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Can Drinking Coffee Make Men Less at Risk to Hearing Loss?
21Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Research

Can Drinking Coffee Make Men Less at Risk to Hearing Loss?

The link between coffee and lower risks of hearing impairment is backed by a research team from the University of Madrid, the capital of Spain. The research team conducted a longitudinal study entitled Coffee consumption and risk of hearing impairment in men and women. It was participated by 16,142 men and 20,781 women. Before their coffee intake was recorded, their hearing was tested first. Throughout the 11-year research wherein the participants consumed 1.6 cups of coffee daily (on average), follow-up hearing tests were conducted twice. The results showed that men who consumed more coffee had a lower risk of developing hearing problems. The type of coffee was an insignificant variable. According to the researchers, this benefit may have stemmed from the coffee’s properties that pr...
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Audiology Gatherings Are Coming to the US, Germany, and Poland
19Mar By bobbyNo Comments
Profession

Audiology Gatherings Are Coming to the US, Germany, and Poland

Amidst the fight against the pandemic, people are starting to come together face-to-face advance causes that matter. One of these causes is hearing health, and the Academy of Doctors of Audiology or ADA is spearheading a gathering for it. The event will take place in the Marriot Downtown Waterfront Hotel in Portland, Oregon from October 25 to 27, 2021. The conference is named AuDacity 2021. It will showcase selected presentations about innovations in audiology that will educate the attendees. In Germany, a meeting is also brewing, and it will happen from the 15th to 17th of September this year. This audiology meeting that will take place in Hanover, Germany is considered to be the biggest one on the planet. The 65th EUHA Congress organizers are said to announce their call for abstrac...
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